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EXERCISES 



IN 



WOOD-WORKII^G 



WITH A SHORT TREATISE ON WOOD 



WRITTEN FOR MANUAL TRAINING GLASSES 
IN SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES 



BY 







IVIN SICKELS, M. S., M. D. 



^ 




NEW YOKE 
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 

1890 



K 






Copyright, 1889, 
By D. APPLETON AND COMPAlSfY. 



i-'3}P') 



PREFACE. 



The exercises in wood-working in this book were pre- 
pared by me during the summer of 1883, for the students 
of the College of the City of New York. Subsequent 
teaching suggested many changes and additions, until the 
manuscript was scarcely presentable. This manuscript has 
been copied for other schools ; and now, in order that those 
who have recently asked for it may receive it in better 
shape, this little volume is printed. 

I am indebted to Mr. Bashford Dean for the part relat- 
ing to injurious insects, which was written expressly for 

this book. 

I. S. 

New York, September, 1889. 



CONTENTS 



PAGE 

Introduction = , 7 

Part First. — Wood. 

Structure of wood 13 

Composition of wood 18 

Branching of stems 19 

Age of trees .20 

Decay of trees 20 

Season for cutting 21 

Milling 31 

Drying of wood 22 

Warping 23 

Properties of wood 24 

Defects in wood 28 

Measure and value of wood 29 

Kinds of wood 30 

Table of chief qualities of wood 38 

Wood and iron 38 

Wood-working trades 39 

Parasitic plants . . .41 

Timber-borers 45 

Preservation of wood 52 

Part Second. — Exercises. 

Tools (Plates A and B) 58 

Drawing (Plate C) 63 

Exercise 1. — Use of the chisel .64 

2. — Use of the chisel (continued) 66 

3. — Use of the gouge 68 

4. — Use of the hammer 70 



6 CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Exercise 5. — Use of the jack-plane 72 

6. — Plane (continued) and marking-gauge 74 

7. — Use of the rip-saw 76 

8. — Use of the cross-cut 78 

Sharpening tools with the oil-stone (Plate D) 80 

Sharpening tools on the grindstone (Plate E) 82 

Sharpening tools. Saw-filing (Plate P) 84 

Exercise 9. — Construction of a half-joint 86 

10.— Modified forms of the half-joint 88 

11. — Construction of a mortise- joint 90 

12. — Pinning the mortise-joint 92 

13. — Construction of a stub-mortise 94 

14. — Construction of a dovetail-joint 96 

15. — Construction of a miter-joint 98 

16. — Use of the miter-box 100 

17. — Construction of a stretcher-joint 102 

18. — Uniting with dowels 104 

19.— Gluing 106 

20. — Examples of glued joints 108 

21. — Laying out a dovetailed box 110 

22. — Laying out and cutting the dovetails 112 

23. — Marking and cutting the tenons 114 

24. — Finishing the box 116 

25. — Hinging the top to tlie box 118 

26. — Construction of a drawer 120 

27. — Construction of a blind-dovetailed box 122 

28.— Framing 124 

29. — Construction of window and door frames .... 126 

80. — Inclosing a building 128 

31. — Laying floors. Trimming 130 

32. — Construction of a sash 132 

33. — Construction of a door 134 

34. — Construction of stairs 136 

35. — Laying out and shaping the hand-rail 138 

36. — Use of the frame-saw. Bending wood 140 

37. — Construction of a pattern 142 

38. — Shaping a boat-model 144 

39. — Veneering 146 

Polishing 148 

Painting 149 

Index 151 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 



INTRODUCTION. 

The tendency of modern systems of education is toward 
a proper distribution of practical with theoretical training. 
The mind is to be aided in its development by the action of 
the eye and hand ; and, in fact, all the special senses are 
employed in objective teaching and manual exercises. In 
school, the eye does more than interpret the printed page : it 
recognizes the form and color of objects, it must calculate 
their size, proportion, and distance, by observing and com- 
paring them ; the hand is required to do more than writing: 
it is taught to appreciate the weight, hardness, and other 
properties of objects, by actual contact with them. At first 
the introduction of drawing, modeling, and the use of tools, 
into the courses of study was experimental ; but, having 
passed beyond that stage, these exercises are now known to 
be efficient aids to a more natural and rapid as well as 
stronger mental development. 

There are some who, after being educated in the abstract 
way, can apply their training successfully to practical pur- 
suits, who see no necessity for manual or industrial training 
in the schools, and who claim that superior and sufficient 
development may be obtained by the study of mercantile 
methods and the classics. These, however, form a very small 
percentage of the people, and systems of education must be 
arranged to stimulate all intellects, and not measured by the 
accomplishments of a few. Our best educators recognize 
this fact, and are modifying old systems by the greater intro- 
duction of manual elements. No one doubts the value of 
practical qualities, not only in ordinary people, but also in 



8 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

prominent leaders, who must be thoroughly practical — a fact 
so aptly illustrated by prosperous manufacturers and mer- 
chants, successful engineers, great generals, and eminent 
statesmen. 

Manual training for the early cultivation of these prac- 
tical qualities in students takes a place in the regular courses 
of study : by means of it the reasoning power is more easily 
awakened ; knowledge of objects and the facts connected with 
them are more readily understood and remembered; and, 
above all, the accuracy and precision demanded by the prac- 
tical studies, lead to closer observation and exactness in 
others. This training begins in the lowest grades, and con- 
tinues in its various applications through all the classes, 
until in the higher grades we find sufficient physical strength 
to handle the ordinary wood-working tools. 

The prime object of all manual training, especially in 
this country, is to aid mental development, and while this 
fact must not be lost sight of, the training should be in some 
useful art, or in some exercises which are introductory to 
the useful arts. 

Perhaps the most valuable of these studies is industrial 
drawing, which is in itself a sort of universal language, a 
medium between thought and execution. Its study cultivates 
precision, and is well calculated to develop sound and accu- 
rate ideas. Drawing naturally precedes construction, it pre- 
pares the way for the work of the engineer, manufacturer, 
or builder. Even the ideas of the inventor are jotted down 
in a chance sketch, which is added to and modified at lei- 
sure, leading to the finished sketch, from which the skilled 
draughtsman produces the designs for the execution of the 
work. 

The studies of drawing and wood-working are closely 
connected, and may be taught together with great advantage 
to both. A simple object is roughly sketched on paper, its 
measurements accurately made and marked on the sketch ; 
from this a drawing is made with instruments, either full 
size or to a scale, which is used in the workshop as a guide 
to the construction of the object. Skill in sketching is a 



INTRODUCTION. 9 

valuable acquirement, and should be taught early in the 
course of industrial drawing. These sketches should, if pos- 
sible, be made from real objects, instead of charts, and should 
always be accompanied by measurements. In sketching it 
is well, first, to determine the number of diagrams necessary 
to show the form or structure of the object, and allot for 
each a certain space on the paper ; second, to place each 
sketch in the middle of its space, of which it should occupy 
about one half, thus leaving a margin for notes, measure- 
ments, and small details ; third, to draw the relative propor- 
tions of the object as accurately as possible ; fourth, to mark 
on the sketch the measurements of each part. 

Wood-working from the simple constructions of earliest 
times has advanced with the necessities and customs of 
nations, until at present it includes the complicated struct- 
ures of modern requirements. Throughout all wood-working 
trades we find certain general principles regarding the cut- 
ting action of tools on wood, and the joining of different 
pieces ; and, since those principles are more easily taught by 
carpentry and joinery, these branches have been generally 
adopted as educational aids. 

The very extensive use of wood for building has given 
rise in this country to a craft of carpenters whose improved 
tools and methods of work are superior in many respects to 
those of European workmen. Based upon these methods, 
workshop practice in schools and colleges as applied to wood- 
work does not stop with carpentry : its design is to prepare 
the way for the entire field of mechanical arts ; so that car- 
pentry and joinery are followed by turnery, carving, and 
possibly a few lessons in pattern-making. These should be 
followed by metal-work, such as forging, chipping, filing, 
and, finally, with the elements of machine-work. The study 
of mechanics as thus taught in the educational workshop 
should be applied correctly, by methods which are the actual 
but intelligent practice of the operating mechanic. As to 
the time required, it can not be expected that the three to 
five hours per week spent in the workshop are going to make 
mechanics; far from it: several years of labor and experi- 



10 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

ence are necessary to produce skilled workmen in any of the 
arts. 

This book deals with carpentry and joinery, and is divided 
into two parts : 

The First Part treats of the structure, properties, and 
kinds of wood ; its manufactures and economic relations to 
other substances, parasitic plants and insects ; and means of 
preserving wood. 

The Second Part contains the exercises, preceded by a 
description of tools, and the manner of drawing used to illus- 
trate the exercises. 

These exercises are based upon American methods of 
work and have been taught as follows : Each exercise was 
explained, illustrated by sketches on the blackboard, and 
then executed by the students. As the exercises advanced, 
the blackboard sketches were prepared with more detail, 
each being shown with its measurements designated. The 
students copied these sketches and noted down such of the 
verbal directions as they could. With the higher exercises 
it was found necessary to issue duplicate copies, describing 
and illustrating each step in construction, and also to exem- 
plify by models made by the instructor. 

Exercises 1 to 8 introduce the chief wood-working tools 
and methods of marking. These exercises should be executed 
with much care and patience, and if necessary repeated, to 
insure better results in subsequent work. 

Following exercise 8 are directions for sharpening tools. 
But students should not attempt to sharpen tools until they 
have had considerable practice in the use of them ; especially 
saw-filing, which requires remarkably good judgment, keen 
eye-sight, and a steady hand. 

Exercises 9 to 20 give instructions for marking out and 
shaping simple joints. 

Exercises 31 to 27 instruct in the methods employed in 
uniting several pieces to make a complete structure. 

Exercises 28 to 35 give the details of ordinary house-car- 
pentry, from which the student may obtain particulars for 
the construction of models, and the apprentice the actual 



INTRODUCTION. \\ 

building of the various parts making up a wooden dwell- 
ing. 

Exercise 36 shows the use of the frame-saw, and methods 
of bending wood. 

Exercise 37 gives an example of pattern- work, and illus- 
trates the manner of uniting pieces for economy of labor. 

Exercise 38 instructs in shaping by the use of templets. 

Exercise 39 treats of veneering, followed by directions for 
painting. and polishing. 



PART FIRST. 



Structure op Wood. 

If we examine the stem of a young plant, we find three 
distinct tissues composing it : On the outside is the bark or 
protecting tissue ( a, Fig. 3) ; inside there is a soft material, 
made up of many-sided, thin-walled cells, which constitute 
the living portion {b, Fig. 3) ; and arranged in a circle in this 
soft tissue are several fibrous bundles (c, Fig. 3), giving to the 
stem its strength to support the branches and leaves. Be- 
cause of differences in the character of these bundles, we 
separate stems into three classes ; and the pine, palm, and 
oak may be taken as types of each. 

In the pine and oak the bundles are similarly arranged, 
and consist of an outer portion called bast {d, Fig. 3), and an 
inner portion called wood (e. Fig. 3) ; between these is a thin 
layer of active cells, which multiply by division to form the 
bast and wood ; this layer is called cambium (/, Fig. 3), and 
adds each year to the size of the bundle. In the palm the 
bundles arise from active cells at the growing point of the 
stem, and continue down the stem, sometimes becoming 
smaller, but retaining a rounded form. 

As the stems grow older and larger, we find, in the pine, 
that new and branching bundles appear between the first 
ones, forming, during the season, a circle of bundles, which 
constitutes the first annual ring. This ring is interrupted by 
plates of tissue communicating between the pith, on the in- 
side of the ring, and the soft tissue on the outside. In a cross- 



14 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 



section of the stem these plates are seen as lines, called medul- 
lary rays, radiating from the center toward the bark. At the 




»' i£ 3 h 



Fig. 1. — Diagram of a stem with a cambium layer. A, section cut across the bundles ; B, 
section in the direction of the bundles ; 1, 2, 3, first, second, and third annual rings ; 
a, a, pith ; 6, 6, pitted vessels ; c, c, wood-cells ; d, spiral vessels, found only in the first 
annual ring ; e, cambium-cells ; /, gr, h, layers of bark ; i, i, medullary ray. (After 
Carpenter.) 



end of the season growth stops, to be resumed again in the 
spring. The slow and condensed growth of summer, and the 
rapid, open growth of spring, give rise to a peculiar mark in 
the bundles which indicates each year's increase, so that by 
counting these marks or the annual rings we may ascertain 
the age of a tree. 

The last few rings formed are engaged in transporting or 
storing up nourishment, and give rise to what is called the 
sap-wood. The rings inside of the sap-wood serve only for 
support, and make up the heart-wood of the tree. 

In the palm, new bundles arise, placed irregularly in the 
soft tissue or pith, and by tracing these bundles throughout 
the plant we see that they extend, usually without branch- 
ing, from the apex of the leaf to the small ends of the roots, 
so that for each new leaf there will be in the stem new bun- 
dles. 



STRUCTURE OF WOOD. 



15 




Fig. 2. — Diagram of a palm-stem. A. cross-section ; 2J, longitudinal section ; a, a. soft 
tissue ; b, 6, vessels or tubes with pitted sides : c, c, wood-cells or fibers ; d, d, vessels 
with spiral markings. (After Carpenter.; 

In the oak we have the same appearance regarding the 
annual rings and medullary rays as in the pine : 




Epidermis a. . bark. 

f pith..flf. 
Active cellB. -b{ medullary ray. .h. 

I { cambium . ./. 

^^'^'^TfnnTi'''" r \ wood <^ ceils, ' 

bundle.... c] Ifiberk. 

t bast-cells.. d. 



Fig. 3.— Section of stem. 



Examining more closely these wood-forming bundles, we 
find them composed of cells with a variety of forms and walls 
of varying thickness and peculiar markings. In the pine 
group the cells are long, with pointed ends, and walls marked 
by characteristic elevations called bordered pits (Fig. 4). These 



16 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 



pits arise during the thickening of the cell-wall, which can 
not take place on the thin circular membranes (Fig. 10, c), 
through which the sap passes, but forms arches with open 
tops over them, and thus gives the bordered appearance. In 





Fig. 4. 



Fig. 5. 



Fig. 0. 



Fig. 4.— Section of pine-wood cut parallel with the medullai-y plates, o, spring: growth, 
with large bordered pits : 6, summer growth, with smaller bordered pits ; c, medul- 
lary tissue. 

Fig. 5.— Section at right angles with the medullary plates, d. bordered pits ; e, medullary 
tissue 

Fig. ().— Cross-section of the same. /, summer growth ; <j, spring growth ; /i, medullary 
ray. 

the heart-wood these thin membranes have broken down, 
allowing a free passage of air or water through the cells. 
In spaces between the wood-cells there are, in most of the 
pines, canals containing resin dissolved in turpentine. The 
thin plates of tissue forming the medullary rays are com- 
posed of small cells, with thin walls in the outer annual 
rings, but in the heari^wood with walls very much thick- 
ened. 

The isolated bundles of the palm are composed of various 
elementSjSome of which simply support, as the bast and wood 
fibers ; others support and conduct, as the vessels and wood- 
cells ; these latter convey air, and water charged with min- 
eral matters absorbed by the roots. 

The bast-fibers are on the outside, surrounding the bundle, 
and are very long, narrow, many-sided cells, with pointed ends, 
the walls very much thickened and marked with oblique pores. 
The wood-fibers are on the inside of the bundle, similar to 
the bast-cells in every respect, except that they are shorter, 
and occasionally used for conducting and storing up nourish- 



STRUCTURE OF WOOD. 



IT 



ment. The vessels or tubes are large and few, and present 
varied markings ; the larger are pitted, the smaller either 





Fig. 7.— Palin-bundle. n, a, bast ; b, pitted 
vessel ; c, wood-cells ; d, smaller ves- 
sels ; e, soft tissue. 



Fig. 8.— Bast-flbere. 



ringed, spiral, netted, or ladder-form. The wood-cells are 
like those of the pine group, but with simple in place of bor- 
dered pits. There are present, also, sieve-tubes with clusters 
of small perforations in sides and ends, and a group of long, 
thin-walled cells similar to the cambium-cells of the pine 
and oak. Frequently in the vicinity of the 
vessels are found thin-walled cells with blunt 
ends, separated from the vessels and sur- 
rounding cells by membranous pores ; these 
cells, which are somewhat similar to cambi- 
um-cells, serve the purpose of conducting 
and storing up the organic materials formed 
in the leaves. 

In the oak group the wood is composed 
of compact bundles made up of the same 
fibers, cells, and vessels found in the palm, 
with the exception of the bast-fibers, which are formed out- 
side of the cambium zone and constitute the inner bark. In 
the spring growth the vessels are large and numerous ; in 
the autumn they are much smaller, and in some cases may 
be absent. By this variation in the size and position of the 
bundles the annual rings become distinctly marked. The 
medullary rays in the heart-wood vary in thickness, and in 
many of the woods the cells composing them become solid. 
2 



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Fig. 9.— Pitted vessels. 



18 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 




Composition of Wood. 

Newly formed cells have the wall composed of cellulose, a 
substance similar to starch in composition. The contents of 
the cell are made up of a number of substances, the chief of 
which are albuminoids, starchy matters, oils, and water with 
dissolved sugars, gums, and acids. 

In the heart-wood the contents have 
disappeared, air taking their place, and 
the cell- wall has become very much thick- 
ened by a deposit within the cellulose of 
a dense substance called lignin, which 
gives to wood its elasticity and hard- 
ness. 

In the living tree, air and water are 
present in varying quantities, depending 
on the season and kind of wood. The 
amount of water is frequently as much 
as fifty per cent. During the seasoning 
of pine, about twenty per cent of water is 
removed from the wood. This may be 
called free water, because it exists in the 
plant with all the ordinary properties of 
water. But there is also in pine-wood 
about the same amount of water, which is 
chemically combined with carbon to form 
cellulose and lignin. The presence of this 
modified water may be demonstrated by 
placing the wood in a partially closed iron 
vessel, and heating it red hot ; the wood 
is reduced to charcoal, while water is given 
off, together with a small quantity of gases, oils, and other 
matters. 

The elementary composition of wood varies according to 
the kind, the soluble matters in the soil, and the amount of 
moisture absorbed by the tree. Generally wood contains 
large quantities in proportion of carbon, hydrogen, and oxy- 
gen ; less of nitrogen, sulphur, and potassium ; and small 



Fig. 10.— Diagram show 
ing growth of the 
cell-wall. 

1. Cambium-cell : a, pro- 

toplasm or living con- 
tents of the cell ; 6, 
nucleus in the proto- 
plasm ; c, thin mem- 
brane through which 
the sap passes. In the 
heart- wood this mem- 
brane has broken 
down, as at d. 

2. Protoplasm forming a 

wall of cellulose. 

3. Protoplasm has disap- 

peared. Cellulose 

changing into lignin. 

4. Cell-wall composed of 

lignin and thin mem- 
brane. 



BRANCHINO OF STEMS. 



19 



quantities of iron, phosphorus, calcium, sodium, and silicon, 
with traces of many other elements. 

If wood is burned in the open air, the carbon, hydrogen, 
nitrogen, sulphur, and part of the oxygen are driven off in 
gaseous form ; the other elements remain, and constitute the 
ash, of which the principal ingredient is potassium. 

The amount of ash is greater in the palms and least in 
the pines. The percentage of a few are as follows : 



Oregon pine 0"08 

Red cedar 013 

Redwood 0*14 

Chestnut O'lS 

White pine 0*19 

Whitewood 0*23 



White oak 0*41 

Hickory 073 

Black walnut 079 

Palmetto 7'66 

Black iron-wood 8*31 

Spanish-bayonet 8"94 



Branching of Stems. 

In the middle of a forest, trees grow straight, tall, and 
slender, as in Fig. 12, because it is necessary for them to 




Fig. 12. 



Fig. 13. 



Fig. 11.— Shape of a tree on the border of a forest, a, broken branch exposing surfaces 

for boring insects or fungus spores. 
Fig. 12. — Young forest tree. b. b. branches die for want of sunlight. 
Fig. 13.— Shape of forest tree with straight stem and crown of small branches and leaves. 

push up the tops in order that they may receive sufficient 
sunlight, to enable the leaves to digest the plant-food and 



20 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

increase the diameter and height of the stem. Lower branch- 
es last only a few years, then die, and are broken off {h, Fig. 
12). On the margins of the forest and in open places, trees 
send out numerous branches, and stems become large in di- 
ameter, but remain short (Fig. 11). The bordering trees, 
while they serve as a protection from the wind for those in- 
side, furnish knotty and cross-grained lumber ; those inside 
produce the straight-grained and valuable wood (Fig. 13). 
Members of the palm group rarely have branching stems. 
In growth, the stems remain long and slender, but frequently 
larger at the top than at the base. 

Age of Trees. 

Like animals, in growth and development plants are sub- 
ject to influences of climate and nourishment. In its proper 
latitude, and with an abundance of water and food in the 
soil, a tree adds to its annual growth and lives to a great age. 
But when the soil becomes exhausted of the necessary ele- 
ments, or a more robust species crowds roots and leaves, then 
a tree begins to show signs of decay. It is difl&cult to estab- 
lish rules regarding the proper age for cutting. For timber, 
most trees are considered fit at about one hundred years, al- 
though oak may furnish excellent timber at two hundred 
years. The purpose for which the wood is to be cut deter- 
mines the proper age. Young trees show a closer grain and 
give a more elastic wood than old ones. Very old trees, al- 
though apparently sound, are found to be partially decayed 
in the middle of the trunk, so that the elasticity and hard- 
ness of the wood are replaced by a characteristic brittleness. 

Decay of Trees. 

As long as a tree is in a healthy condition, its top or 
crown retains its small branches, but when these refuse to 
send forth leaves, and break off, it is a sign of decay, and the 
tree should be cut down and put to some use ; for, if allowed 
to stand, its decay, aided by parasitic insects, will proceed 
rapidly until there remains nothing but a shell, composed of 
the growing zone and a few of the last annual rings, and its 



SEASON FOR CUTTING. 21 

value for any purpose will become very much lessened or 
entirely lost. 

Breaking or sawing off a branch and leaving the wound 
exposed will furnish an opportunity for fungus spores or 
boring insects to begin the destruction of the wood. 

Cutting down trees on the border of a forest, or clearing 
a large space within it, is destructive to the tall trees remain- 
ing exposed to the winds and elements. The swaying of the 
stems in a storm causes the tender root-hairs to be broken 
off, thus preventing absorption of sufficient nourishment by 
the root, and shortening the life of the tree. 

Season for cutting. 

The proper time of the year for cutting down trees is an 
important matter. In the spring and late summer the outer 
portion of the wood is charged with elements which tend to 
hasten its decay. In the drier summer months and in winter 
the growing and conducting cells are less active or altogeth- 
er dormant, and better wood may be secured if cut during 
those times of the year. Oak is said to be more durable if 
cut just after the leaves have fallen. 

The trees are cut with axe or saw, and skill is required to 
fell a tree so that it will come safely to the ground, and not 
hang suspended to neighboring branches or crush young 
trees in its fall. An experienced woodman will direct the 
falling tree exactly where he wishes. He cuts on the side 
and about at a right angle to the direction in which he wish- 
es the tree to fall ; next he cuts on the opposite side, and, if 
necessary, a few inches higher. 

The tree, after falling, is cleared of its branches and sawed 
into lengths, according to the future use of the wood. 

Milling. 

If near a stream, the logs are rolled or drawn to the water 
and floated to the mill, where they are examined and grouped 
according to fitness for special uses. A long immersion of 
the logs in water removes soluble substances in the sap- 
wood, but is said to injure the heart-wood by rendering it 



22 EXERCISES IX WOOD-WOEKINO. 

less elastic. Water, however, is the easiest and cheapest 
means of transporting logs. In the absence of an available 
stream, the logs are carried on wagons or sleds to a railway 
or directly to the mill. 

The old-time mill, with its single upright saw and ancient 
water-wheel, is seldom seen nowadays ; it has given way to 
gang and circular saws, and even to giant band-saws, run by 
turbine or steam. Frequently portable engines and saws are 
employed on the ground where the trees are cut, thus saving 
the transportation of the waste portions of the logs. 

Logs are sawed into either timber, planks, or boards, and 
these constitute lumber. Timber includes all of the largest 
sizes, such as beams and joists. Planks are wide, of varying 
lengths, and over one inch in thickness. Boards are one inch 
or less in thickness, and of varying lengths and widths. 
Lumber may be resawed into the many smaller sizes which 
are to be found in the seasoning and storing yards. 

The rough-sawed lumber may be planed at a mill, and is 
then called dressed lumber, of which there is a great variety, 
adapted to almost every purpose for which wood is used. 
Dressed planks and boards when free of all defects are called 
clear^ and their regular sizes are f , f, 1-J, If, and 1|- inches, 
which are one eighth of an inch less in thickness than sawed 
lumber. .One-half -inch dressed is made by resawing one-and- 
^-quarter-inch lumber. 

Drying of Wood. 

In the preparation of lumber for use, it is necessary to 
remove its moisture, after which the wood is seasoned. The 
planks and boards after sawing are placed in large square 
piles in the open air, each layer separated by three or four 
narrow strips or boards laid in the opposite direction. By 
this means a free circulation of air takes place throughout 
the pile ; the drying is gradual and thorough, if allowed suf- 
ficient time. For ordinary carpentry, two years is considered 
enough, but for joinery at least four years should be allotted 
to the seasoning. Many processes have been devised to 
hasten the evaporation — such as kiln-drying, in which the 



WARPmO. 23 

wood is placed in chambers heated by steam or hot air, or 
by the employment of vacuum-pumps together with heat. 
All are inferior, however, to the open-air seasoning, in that 
they cause a rapid drying of the surface and ends, with a 
slow or imperfect drying of the interior; thus impairing 
both the strength and elasticity of the wood. 

It is difficult to give rules for testing wood to determine 
whether it has been properly seasoned or not. One way is 
to push a knife-blade into the wood, and note how much it 
sticks when withdrawn. Another is to cut a shaving from 
the board, and note its elasticity, brittleness, or strength. 
Experienced workmen crush shavings in their hands to de- 
termine the character of the wood. 

As the wood loses its water it shrinks perceptibly^ much 
more in the direction of the annual rings than in the direc- 
tion of the medullary rays, and very little,, if at all, in the 
direction of the fibers. If we examine 
the end of a log which has been exposed 
to the weather, we will find cracks ex- 
tending from the center toward the cir- 
cumference, and which penetrate from 
a few inches to a foot or more into the 
log (Fig. 14). These cracks, called 
wind-checks, are seen in planks and 
boards, and cause the ends to become 
waste wood. To prevent this rapid ^^^ i4._Enci"'of oak-iog ex- 
drying, the ends of the logs are tarred S"*chec*k ? ^ X^kT "' 
or painted. If the lumber is piled soon 

after sawing, these wind-checks are smaller, and the waste 
portion is consequently less. 

Warping, 

Because of the unequal shrinking of the wood in drying, 
the planks and boards have a natural tendency to warp or curl. 
Those cut farthest from the center of the log warp the most, 
while those at the center remain nearly flat. Lumber sea- 
soned under pressure, such as that exerted in the pile in the 
open air, dries straight and true ; but, if it should be resawed 




24 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 






Fig. 15.— Warping of planks cut from an unsea- 
soned log. 



into boards of half the thickness, it will require further sea- 
soning to avoid warping. This tendency to warp is sometimes 

seen in very old wood; 
for instance, in planing 
down an old mahogany 
table - top to remove 
scratches, what was per- 
fectly straight and flat 
before now warps and 
twists to a remarkable 
degree. This shows the 
necessity of using, in construction, lumber of the same 
thickness in which it has been seasoned. 

Another cause which changes the shape of wood is its tend- 
ency to absorb moisture, either from the air or the ground. 
This makes it necessary to protect exposed surfaces with paint 
or varnish. Pieces of work, in process of construction, should 
stand endwise and not lie on the floor, even if it seems per- 
fectly dry. Lumber in the workshop is kept in racks hang- 
ing from the ceiling. These racks are so arranged as to allow 
the boards to rest on one edge, and to be separated by vertical 
strips. In this manner the boards are easily accessible, and 
the seasoning process is continued by the warmth of the room. 

Properties of Wood. 

Grain. — We have seen that wood is composed of long, hol- 
low wood cells, or fibers, sometimes accompanied by vessels 
of varying diameters. The character and direction of these 
fibers constitute what is termed the grain of the wood. As 
these fibers separate and break more easily lengthwise than 
across, we say that wood splits with the grain. If the fibers 
run very straight, the wood is straight-grained; if crooked, 
then it is called cross-grained. Many causes affect the regu- 
larity of the grain : the stem itself may be crooked, it may 
be straight, but the fibers run spirally around it, or there may 
be sets of fibers alternating in spiral directions ; branches and 
wounds also cause cross-grain. 

If the cells are small and compact, the grain is said to be 



PROPERTIES OF WOOD. 26 

fine, as in box-wood ; if nearly uniform in size and thickness, 
the wood is even-grained, as in maple. The cells may vary 
greatly in size and thickness, and have large vessels in the 
spring growth, which would give rise to coarse-grained wood, 
as in the oak, ash, and chestnut. 

The appearance given by the annual rings and medullary 
rays to the surface of the wood differs very much with the 
kind of wood and the part of the log from which the board 
is sawed. Special cuts are made to obtain the best effect of 
these markings. To show silver-grain, the face of the board 
should be parallel, or nearly so, with the medullary rays. 
The birch is an excellent example of this effect. Maple and 
ash are frequently seen with a wavy or curled grain. For 
veneers, which are about one sixteenth of an inch in thick- 
ness, wood with a very irregular grain is selected, such as 
walnut roots and knots, and knurls of mahogany. In some 
old maple-trees an appearance called bird's-eye, due to a small 
circular inflection of the fibers, gives to the wood a fine effect. 

Woods in which the grain runs alternately in different 
directions, though hard to split and very difficult to work 
and finish, usually furnish an ornamented grain, such as 
mahogany. 

Density. — This property depends on the more or less com- 
plete thickening of the walls of the wood-cells, and also upon 
the number and size of the vessels. Certain operations, such 
as turning, carving, and wood-engraving require dense or 
close-grained woods. 

Porosity. — A porous wood has large, thin-walled cells and 
many open vessels. Its open grain is easily filled with pre- 
serving liquids which adapts it for framing and timber work 
generally ; if such a wood is to be finished, the pores must be 
filled before a good surface can be obtained. As a rule, porous 
woods are soft and light, while dense woods are hard and 
heavy. 

Weight and Hardness. — It sometimes happens that the en- 
tire cell is replaced by the thickened cell-wall, and this, to- 
gether with deposits of oily and resinous substances, make 
an exceedingly hard and heavy wood. On the contrary, we 



26 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

have very light woods, even lighter than cork ; these are 
composed of thin- walled cells filled with air. Between these 
extremes are found many gradations of weight and hardness, 
but woods are generally spoken of as hard or soft, and heavy 
or light. The hard and heavy woods are stronger and more 
durable than the softer and lighter ones. 

The weight is expressed by a number, which shows the 
weight of the wood compared with the weight of an equal 
bulk of water, taken as the standard. 

During the process of drying, wood becomes lighter and 
harder ; thus, lignum- vitse and most of the palms are quite 
soft and easily cut when green, but after drying are worked 
with great difficulty. 

Strength. — The strength of wood depends on peculiar pow- 
ers of resisting various forces brought to bear upon it. Thus, 
lignum-vitse and the oaks are noted for their stiffness, or 
resistance to bending, which is probably due to the interlac- 
ing of their fibers. Young hickory, lance-wood, and others 
are very elastic, bending readily and returning to their former 
position without injury to the structure. Black or swamp 
ash and young white oak split easily into long and strong 
strips or bands such as those used for making chair-seats or 
baskets. Very little force is required to break the fibers of 
whitewood, birch, and mahogany across the grain. Pine, 
ash, and maple break easily but with a splintered fracture. 
In some palms this splintering occurs to such a degree, that 
walking-sticks may b.e transformed into very dangerous 
weapons, which has given rise to laws in some countries re- 
stricting their use. Rattan, oak, and hickory, when bent 
short, have the individual fibers unbroken, but separated 
from each other ; and are therefore tough woods. Hard and 
dense woods resist compression, while soft woods yield to 
pressure and are indented ; and more so when the pressure 
is applied on the sides than on the ends of the fibers. This 
compressibility of the softer woods is taken advantage of in 
gluing up joints, where the pieces are forced into perfect 
contact by the pressure of the screws. To secure a good 
joint with hard woods it is necessary to use the greatest care 



PROPERTIES OF WOOD. 27 

in preparing and cutting the pieces. The cohesion of the 
particles of the fibers, when strains are applied lengthwise, 
is very great, several tons being required to fracture pine 
one inch square. 

Color. — As the heart-wood becomes lignified, coloring- 
matters are deposited within the substance of the cell-wall, 
giving to each kind its characteristic colors ; these are ex- 
hibited in great variety, including every shade of color be- 
tween the white of satin-wood and the black of ebony. In 
the same wood there may be variations of tint, or even color, 
in the annual rings and medullary rays, enhancing the beauty 
of its appearance. The sap-wood receives none of the color- 
pigments, and therefore is always light or even white. As 
a rule, exposed surfaces, whether varnished or not, become 
darker ; and this darkening, besides indicating age, gives to 
the surface a more agreeable effect than that of new wood. 
It is for this reason, as well as deception, that new cabinet- 
work of hard wood is stained to imitate the effects of age. 
Color combined with a figured grain constitutes the intrinsic 
ornament of wood. 

Durability. — At great age a slow oxidation of the constitu- 
ents of the cell- wall takes place in the interior of the heart- 
wood of standing trees, thus rendering the wood softer and 
brittle, and an easy prey to the fungi and insects. Dampness, 
by promoting fungus growths, is very destructive to cut 
timber, few woods withstanding its injurious influence; 
especially is this so when there are alternating dampness and 
dryness as seen in those portions of a building or structure 
in contact with the soil. Most woods if kept dry and pro- 
tected from insects with paint or varnish, will last for ages, as 
illustrated by ancient pieces of furniture. Nearly all woods 
are perfectly preserved if kept immersed in water, which is 
shown by the wood of vessels that have been sunk for a hun- 
dred years or more, and which finds application in laying the 
foundations of stone for large buildings and bridges upon 
the tops of piles driven below the water-mark. Many woods 
like cedar and camphor-wood have within their substance oils 
and resins which protect them from the fungi and insect life. 



28 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKINO. 



Defects in Wood. 

Some of the defects found in lumber, as wind-checks, 
cross-grain, warping, and improper seasoning, have already 
been alluded to. Wood may be shaky (6, Fig. 14), which is a 
separation of the annual rings, showing checks or splits, 
sometimes including nearly all of the central portion and 
extending throughout the length of the stem. No wood fur- 
nishes a better example of this than hemlock. This shaky 
condition is caused by the swaying from the force of wind, 
acting upon trees in open places, along the borders of forests, 
and especially those adjoining cleared tracts. 

Knots in the wood are imperfections arising from the de- 
flection of the fibers which form branches. Near the center 
of the stem the fibers are few and the knot small, but as the 
stem enlarges in size the number of fibers in the branch 
increases so that at the circumference of the stem the knots 
are largest. The great strength required at the union of 
branch and stem is shown by the superi- 
or hardness and density of the wood 
composing the knot. Dead branches 
give rise to loose and dark-colored knots 
(Fig. 16, h), and the fibers of the stem 
that form afterward bend around the 
branch, continue up the stem, and pro- 
duce cross-grained wood in the vicinity 
of the knot. Fast knots are the result 
of living branches, and boards contain- 
ing them may be used wherever strength 
or finish is not required. 

Sap-wood. — The edges of boards fre- 
quently retain a portion of the sap-wood, which must not be 
placed in any permanent structure, because of its softness 
and tendency to induce decay. 

Resin-pockets are spaces between the annual rings of pine 
timber, filled completely or in part with resin. These slightly 
weaken the board, and if used in any portion of a building 
exposed to the warmth of the sun, will exude drops of 




Fig 



o, fast 



MEASURE AND VALUE OF WOOD. 29 

turpentine, even if the surface lias been painted or var- 
nished. 

Decay. — Of all the defects in wood, decay or rot is at once 
the most prevalent and disastrous to the strength and use- 
fulness of the material, and, when begun, will continue until 
the whole of the wood is consumed. 

Defects in milling are frequent. Lumber may be uneven 
in width or thickness. The saw may have torn out fibers in 
places, or have cut irregularly, so that, in planing the boards, 
marks of the saw remain. When the edges of boards are 
not squared, they are termed wany. 

Measure and Value of Wood. 

Timber and lumber one inch or more in thickness are 
sold by the square foot, meaning one foot square by one inch 
thick, or containing one hundred and forty-four cubic inches. 
Boards less than one inch in thickness, and veneers, are sold 
by the square foot, face measure. Lumber which is finished 
at the mills for special purposes may be sold by the running 
foot, or length in feet, as moldings ; or by the piece, as fence- 
boards, studs, and many kinds cut to standard sizes, A few 
are sold in quantity, as fence-pickets, laths, or a bundle of 
shingles, intended to cover a certain area. Many of the more 
expensive and fancy woods, such as lignum-vitae and box- 
wood, are sold by the pound. 

Values of wood vary with supply and demand as well 
as with quality and appearance. Durability and a figured 
grain are especially sought for. Fashion also, in dictating 
the material as well as the style, determines the demand for 
the hard woods, particularly those used for furniture and 
the interior wood-work of houses. Thus we find a succession 
of favorites, each of which, after serving a few years of pre- 
ferment, has been set aside to make room for the next. Be- 
ginning with mahogany and rose-wood, we note black walnut, 
ash, ebony and its imitations, and again mahogany, as having 
been the choice, until at the present day, oak, neglected for 
many years, is the leading wood. 



30 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING, 

Kinds of Wood. 

In this list are given the woods commonly used hy car- 
penters and joiners, together with their chief characteristics. 

Pine Oroup. 

White Pine, commonly called pine, is a rapidly growing 
tree in the Northern United States and in Canada. It attains 
a large size in favorable soils, and furnishes a light, soft, not 
strong wood, with a close and straight grain. The annual 
rings are marked by narrow summer growths, and the me- 
dullary rays are very fine and numerous. The color is a faint 
yellowish brown, darkening with exposure. Its abundance, 
the ease with which it is worked, and its power to hold glue, 
make its use very extensive, especially in all carpentry-work 
where an easily finished wood is desired. It is one of the 
best woods for making patterns for casting. 

Georgia Pine, of the South Atlantic and Gulf States, is a 
large forest tree with smaller annual rings than pine, and 
with a broad, dense, resinous, and dark-colored summer 
growth, which gives to the wood a well-marked grain. In 
radial section the numerous and fine medullary rays are 
scarcely visible. The wood is heavy, hard, strong, and dura- 
ble, becoming harder and somewhat brittle with age. It is 
used for heavy timbers, floors, and, because of its grain, 
sometimes as a trimming wood. 

The many other species of pine have local or limited use. 
Among them the yellow or Jersey pine is perhaps the best 
known, as it is largely manufactured into lumber. Its prop- 
erties are about intermediate between white and Georgia 
pine 

Black Spruce grows in about the same regions as white 
pine, and furnishes a wood very similar to it, excepting 
that it is more resinous. This and white spruce are com- 
monly called spruce, and are used extensively for inferior 
work. 

Hemlock. — A species similar to spruce, grows in the North- 
ern States. Its wood, which splits or breaks easily, is light, 



KINDS OF WOOD. 31 

moderately soft, has a coarse, uneven grain, and is frequently- 
shaky. It holds a nail much better than pine, which fits it 
for rougher building material. 

White Cedar. — Abundant in the Atlantic States, supply- 
ing a soft, light, fine-grained, and durable wood, suited 
for a variety of purposes where durability rather than 
strength is required. The annual growth is of moderate 
size, made up of very small wood-cells, traversed by exceed- 
ingly fine and numerous medullary rays. It is used in 
boat - building, cabinet - work, cooperage, cigar - boxes, and 
shingles. 

Red CedaJ is a small tree of slow growth, widely distrib- 
uted in various soils, usually rocky, but reaching its largest 
size in swamps. The wood is like white cedar, but more 
compact, even-grained, and durable. It is reddish-brown in 
color and extensively used in cabinet-work, because of its 
strong odor, which repels insects. Its durability makes it 
valuable for posts, sills, and other structures in contact with 
or near the ground. 

Cypress. — This tree of the Southern swamps grows to a 
great size. It furnishes a most valuable wood, because of its 
durability, which is claimed to be superior to that of all 
other woods. It is light brown in color, and in structure 
similar to white cedar, with larger wood-cells. Its timber is 
preferable to pine in trimming brick houses, and in all parts 
exposed to the weather. In the South its employment is as 
general as that of pine in the North. 

Redwood. — Of late years the wood of the giant fir-trees of 
California has been introduced into the chief lumber mar- 
kets of the country. The wood-cells are large, the compact 
summer growth constituting about one quarter of the 
annual increase. The color is a dull red, the quality very 
durable, while the wood shrinks perceptibly in the direc- 
tion of the grain. In other respects this wood resembles 
pine, and is used for general construction as well as orna- 
mentation. 



32 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

Palm Group. 

While in many tropical countries the palms supply the 
inhabitants with many necessities, as building-woods, starch, 
sugar, fruits, fibers for ropes and cloth ; in temperate cli- 
mates the abundance of better material limits the use of the 
palm group. 

Palms. — The numerous kinds differ in height, diameter, 
and structure. The fibro-vascular bundles vary in size and 
number, are exceedingly hard, and the surrounding pith 
either soft or very hard and solid at the outside and soft with 
few bundles on the inside. Usually the wood cuts easily 
when green, but only with the greatest difficulty when dry- 
Besides the use of the palmetto for wharf -piles, some of the 
palms are combined in cabinet-work, and used for canes and 
handles. 

Rattan. — A long, slender, trailing palm, furnishing a 
tough, flexible material, which enters largely into the manu- 
facture of furniture. 

Bamboo. — A gigantic member of the grass family, grows 
in the tropical regions of America and Asia, and has a lim- 
ited use in cabinet-work. Its hollow, jointed stem adapts it 
to many inferior uses, such as canes and handles, and when 
split and joined in a peculiar way forms the much-prized 
fishing-rods. 

Oak Oroup. 

Bircli. — Among the many species of birch, the cherry or 
black birch supplies the best lumber. The wood is heavy 
and strong, colored brownish -red, with a fine, compact, and 
evenly marked grain, due to the absence of many vessels in 
the annual rings, and has very small but visible medullary 
rays. It is used in ship-building, turning, and extensively in 
cheap furniture. 

White Oak is the standard by which the strength, dura- 
bility, hardness, and other qualities of the various woods are 
compared. It is distributed generally throughout the east- 
ern half of the United States, grows to a large size, and fur- 
nishes superior timber. Large vessels in the spring growth 
occupy from one third to one half of the narrow an- 



» KINDS OF WOOD. 33 

nual rings. The medullary rays are large, thick, and ex- 
ceedingly hard. The wood is heavy, hard, strong, diffi- 
cult to split radially, coarse-grained, and colored a light 
brown. It is used in structures requiring great strength, 
and especially in ship-building, cooperage, and carriage-mak- 
ing. 

Red Oak. — A very large forest tree of the United States. 
It furnishes a heavy, hard, and strong wood, with a very 
coarse grain, due to a large number of vessels of uniform 
size crowded into the first half of the annual growth, and 
also to the large and thick medullary rays. The wood is 
reddish brown, durable, and used extensively for furniture 
and cabinet-work generally. 

Chestnut. — A very large forest tree common in the Atlan- 
tic States, having a characteristic coarse-grained wood. The 
annual growth is considerable, frequently over half an inch, 
in which the vessels are numerous, large in the spring wood, 
but gradually becoming smaller toward the summer growth. 
The medullary rays are small and indistinct. The wood is 
light, moderately soft, breaks and splits easily, is remarkably 
durable exposed to the weather and not in contact with the 
soil. The tree reaches its best condition at about fifty years 
of age, after which it is very liable to decay in the middle of 
the heart-wood. It is well adapted for the coarser parts of a 
building, is used to a small extent in cabinet-work, and ex- 
tensively for out-of-door structures. 

Beech. — A large forest tree growing generally east of the 
Mississippi, provides a heavy, hard, and strong wood. It 
has a fine, even grain, is of a light color, and has large me- 
dullary rays. It is used to a limited extent for furniture, 
but more for implements, especially plane-stocks. 

Black Walnut is one of our finest and largest timber-trees, 
growing in the central and eastern portions of the United 
States. It furnishes long, wide planks and boards of supe- 
rior qualities. The wood is moderately heavy and hard, 
dark, porous, and marked by a beautiful grain. It is strong, 
durable, and not liable to the attacks of insects. The annual 
rings contain many vessels, and the medullary rays are ex- 

3 



34: EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKINO. 

ceedingly small. At one time it was the favorite wood, and 
extensively used for internal decoration and fancy-work. 
It is still largely used combined with veneers from roots and 
knurls of European varieties. Gun-stocks are almost exclu- 
sively made of walnut. 

Butternut is a small species of walnut, giving a light and 
soft wood, with a well-marked grain. Its lumber is short in 
length, not liable to split, noted for its resistance to heat and 
moisture, and the ease with which it receives paint or polish. 
It is used in cabinet-work. 

Hickory is a tree of branching habit, found commonly in 
the United States. Its wood is heavy, tough, very strong, and 
usually cut into planks. The annual rings are indistinct 
and crowded with fine vessels, or marked by a narrow zone 
of largei" vessels. The medullary rays are very broad, nu- 
merous, and distinct. The flexibility and toughness of the 
wood cause it to be extensively used in the construction of 
implements, tools, carriages, etc. Difficulty of working and 
liability to the attacks of boring insects prevent its use in 
building. 

Buttonwood, or sycamore, is the largest tree of the oak 
group in the United States. It furnishes a heavy, hard, light- 
brown wood, with a fine, close grain. It is readily polished, 
easily broken, and difficult to work. Throughout its an- 
nual rings are small vessels, very numerous in the spring 
growth. The medullary rays are numerous and thick, and 
give to the radial section a silver grain similar to that of 
beech but more strongly marked. The great liability of the 
wood to decay, and its tendency to warp, restrict its use to 
structures thoroughly protected from the atmosphere and 
moisture. 

Ash. — A large tree growing in the colder portions of the 
United States, furnishes a moderately heavy, hard, strong, 
and very elastic wood. The annual rings are compact, with 
large vessels in the spring growth. The medullary rays are 
numerous, small, and thin. The wood is coarse-grained, 
light brown, and extensively used for implements and ma- 
chinery, for furniture and cabinet-work. Its liability to 



KINDS OF WOOD. 35 

decay, and its brittleness with age, prevent its use in heavy- 
work, 

Apple. — The reddish-colored wood of the familiar fruit 
tree, is .moderately heavy and hard, has a very compact 
and fine grain. The annual rings are narrow with small 
vessels, and the medullary rays are very fine and crowded. 
The wood is preferred for tool-handles, turnery, and smok- 
ing-pipes. 

Pear. — In structure the wood of the pear-tree is similar to 
that of the apple. It becomes hard and dense when dry, 
and yields readily to edge tools. Its almost grainless charac- 
ter adapts it for a variety of purposes, particularly carving 
and the coarsest kinds of wood-engraving. 

Wild Cherry. — A tree common in the United States, fur- 
nishes a moderately heavy, hard, .and durable wood. The 
annual rings are wide and evenly filled with small vessels. 
The medullary rays are fine, crowded, and light red in color. 
The grain is fine and close, and the wood easily polished. It 
is brownish red in color, and used extensively for cabinet- 
work. After several years the wood becomes very brittle. 

Locust. — One of the largest forest trees, growing generally 
throughout the United States. Its hard, yellowish wood is 
composed of very wide annual layers, in which there are 
comparatively few and large vessels arranged in rows. The 
medullary rays are well marked and numerous. Although it 
polishes readily, it is used only to a small extent in cabinet- 
work, but finds a demand in exposed structures, where great 
durability is necessary, as in ship-building, supports for 
buildings, posts, etc. Its hardness, which increases after 
manufacture, makes it a favorite with turners. 

Sugar-Maple is a timber-tree of large size, growing in the 
northern parts of the United States and in Canada, which, 
besides furnishing a sap rich in sugar, gives a light-colored, 
fine-grained, hard, strong, and heavy wood. Its annual growth 
is narrow, with small vessels scattered through it. The medul- 
lary rays are small and distinct, giving to the radial surface 
a well-marked silver grain. In the older trees, wavy or curled 
grain, or the inflection called bird's-eye, may appear, enhanc- 



36 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

ing the beauty and increasing the value of the wood. Were 
it not for its want of durability, its hardness and handsome, 
silky grain would make it our most valuable wood. It is 
used for a great variety of purposes — building, implements, 
machine-frames, work-benches, furniture, fancy-work, and 
turnery. Curled and bird's-eye maples are frequently sawed 
into veneers. 

Mahogany. — A native tree of the West Indies and Central 
America. It is a very large and most valuable tree, furnish- 
ing a durable and handsomely marked wood. Its color varies 
from yellowish to reddish brown ; its hardness from a mod- 
erately to an exceedingly hard wood ; and its grain from 
straight to the most crooked contortions. The annual rings 
are large, and contain a few large, scattered vessels. The 
medullary rays are very fine and crowded. A peculiarity in 
the growth of mahogany is the alternating obliquity of the 
fibers of one annual layer to those adjoining ; this is some- 
times over ninety degrees between fibers four or five layers 
apart. The straight-grained varieties have little tendency to 
warp, but the cross-grained ones warp and twist to a remark- 
able degree. The wood is used for many purposes — machine- 
frames, work-benches, all kinds of furniture, cabinet-work, 
interior finish of dwellings, and patterns. 

Lignum-vitSB. — A West India wood, exceedingly heavy and 
hard. The annual rings are almost solid, containing a few 
small and scattered vessels. The medullary rays are very 
numerous, but difficult to make out. The wood is very resin- 
ous, hard to split because of the obliquity of the fibers of the 
annual layers, and dark brown in color ; it is soapy to the 
touch ; is used for small tools, bowls, and in turnery ; and is 
well adapted for block-pulleys. 

Basswood is a large tree growing generally throughout 
the Northern United States and Canada. It furnishes a light, 
soft wood, with the general appearance of pine. The annual 
layers are filled with very small vessels, the medullary rays 
numerous and distinctly seen in radial sections. Though 
not strong, the wood is difficult to split, and has a great tend- 
ency to warp. It may be easily bent, thus adapting it to a 



KINDS OF WOOD. 37 

variety of uses, especially the curved panels of carriages and 
sleighs. 

Whitewood is the wood of the tulip-tree, a large, straight- 
stemmed forest tree, growing in most of the United States. 
The wood is light, soft, breaks easily without splintering, 
does not split with the grain when dry, shrinks excessively 
in drying, and is very liable to warp and twist. The annual 
rings are very large, with numerous small vessels through- 
out, giving a fine grain. The medullary rays are very nu- 
merous and distinct. The cheapness, ease with which it is 
worked, and large size of its boards, cause the wood to be 
used in carpentry and cabinet-work in many places where 
pine is better suited. 

Rosewood. — The wood of several foreign trees growing in 
Brazil, Canary Islands, Siam, and other places. The annual 
rings are narrow, almost solid with resinous materials, and 
with a few very large, scattered vessels. The medullary rays 
are very fine but perceptible on the smoothed surface. The 
wood is heavy, hard, brittle, takes a high polish, and has a 
characteristic odor and taste. The grain is remarkably hand- 
some, those kinds with alternating dark-brown and red mark- 
ings being most prized. Besides tool-handles few things are 
made of the solid wood ; it is sawed into veneers which are 
extensively used in cabinet-work. 

Boxwood. — A tree growing in Southern Europe and Asia, 
furnishes a heavy, hard wood with a peculiarly even, almost 
structureless grain. The annual rings are very narrow, with 
many small, scattered vessels. The medullary rays are very 
fine and numerous. Boxwood is yellowish in color, and is 
used for many purposes— in turning, model-making, and 
particularly in wood-engraving, in which it has no equal. 

Ebony. — A dark, sometimes jet-black wood, from several 
foreign countries, the best coming from the Mauritius. The 
wood is heavy, hard, very strong, with an almost solid annual 
growth, in which there are very few open vessels. The me- 
dullary rays are very fine, but visible. It has an astringent 
taste, takes a high polish, and is used for many small articles, 
in turnery, and in cabinet-work. 



38 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

Table of Woods, with their Chief Qualities compared by Simple Numbers. 



COMMON NAME. 



White Pine .... 
Georgia Pine . . 
Black Spruce . . 

Hemlock 

White Cedar . . . 

Red Cedar 

Cypress 

Redwood 

Birch 

White Oak .... 

Red Oak 

Chestnut 

Beech 

Black Walnut.. 

Butternut 

Hickory 

Button wood . . . 

Ash 

Wild Cherry . . . , 

Locust , 

Sugar-Maple . . . , 

Mahogany , 

Lignum-vit£B. . . . 

Basswood , 

White wood . . . . , 



Scientific name. 



Pinus strobus 

P. palustris 

Picea nigra 

Tsuga Canaderisis 

Chamoecyparis sphceroidea . 

Juniperus Virginiana 

Taxudium distichum 

Sequoia sempervirens 

Betula lenta 

Quercus alba 

Q. rubra 

Castanea vulgaris 

Eagus ferruginea 

Juglans nigra 

•J. einerea 

Carya alba 

Platanus occidentalis 

Fraxinus Americana 

Prunus serotifia 

Robinia Pseudaeacia 

Acer macrophyllum 

Swietenia mahogani 

Guaiacum sanctum 

Tilia Americana 

Liriodendron tulipifera . . . 



Weight. 
Water — 


Hard- 


Bend- 


1-00. 




ing. 


•39 


1 


5 


•70 


4 


10 


•46 


1 


7 


•42 


2 


5 


•33 


1 


1 


•49 


4 


3 


•45 


2 


■6 


•42 


1 


3 


•76 


7 


9 


•75 


7 


6 


•65 


5 


7 


•45 


2 


5 


•69 


6 


8 


•61 


6 


7 


•41 


2 


4 


•84 


9 


9 


•57 


5 


5 


•65 


5 


6 


•58 


6 


5 


•73 


8 


8 


•49 


5 


4 


•73 


10 


6 


1-14 


(28) 


5 


•45 


1 


5 


•42 


2 


5 



Break- 
ing. 



4 
4 
1 
4 
3 
3 
9 
6 
7 
4 
9 
5 
3 
9 
3 
5 
5 
10 
4 
7 
5 
2 
3 



Wood and Iron. 

Before the great advancement in the manipulation of iron 
and steel, wood had a much more extended application than 
exists at the present day. Structures such as buildings, fur- 
niture, and implements, were made entirely of wood; the 
pieces were stiffened by wooden braces and the joints fast- 
ened by wooden pins. But the superior strength of metal, 
and the convenience which attends its use in connection with 
wood, have led to great changes in the manner of construc- 
tion and the form of the work. Wooden pins and hand-made 
nails have given way to machine-cut nails and screws, and 
the superior joints obtained by the latter allow the wooden 
parts to be made of different kinds and much lighter than 
before. 

In America, where wood is plentiful and cheap, dwellings 



WOOD-WORKING TRADES. 39 

and buildings generally are made of this material. In por- 
tions of the larger cities where the houses are necessarily- 
high and crowded, the danger attending the use of such a 
readily inflammable substance as wood has led to the adop- 
tion of brick and stone for the walls, and metal or slate for 
the roofs. 

Lightness of weight and the natural beauty of its grain 
will always insure the employment of wood in the manufact- 
ure of furniture, and for the trim and interior decoration of 
houses. To secure lightness and elasticity in implements 
and machinery, many parts must be constructed of wood. 

Temporary structures, such as scaffolding and the false 
work of bridges and trestles, are built of wood, and require 
almost as much care in their construction as if intended to 
be permanent. 

In ship-building, iron and steel have almost supplanted 
the employment of wood. Their superior strength and firm- 
ness at the joints make safer and faster vessels. 

As a direct result of the progress in the manufacture of 
iron and steel, most of the wood-working tools and machin- 
ery have been greatly modified and improved. This is best 
seen among the measuring, boring, and planing tools, which 
have so changed that greater accuracy, easier work, and 
better finish are now within the power of every workman. 
Among the machines may be found appliances for imitating 
many of the operations formerly done by hand, and, while 
this may seem to be an encroachment upon the province of 
the workman, it must be remembered that the proper care 
and adjustment of these machines, and the accurate union of 
the pieces shaped by them, necessitate a thorough knowledge 
of the manipulation of the hand tools. 

Wood-working Trades. 

While one or two men in a small community may furnish 
all the wood and metal work needed by it, in large towns 
and cities the great amount and variety of work required 
necessitate a division of labor, resulting in numerous trades 
or crafts. Some of these are exclusively wood-working. 



40 EXEECISE8 IN WOOD-WORKING. 

others metal - working, while a few combine portions of 
both. 

To follow or employ any one of the trades intelligently 
and successfully, the underlying principles governing the use 
of all sharp tools must first be thoroughly understood and 
acquired by practice. Upon this knowledge as a basis the 
numerous details of forms and joints, of arrangement and 
adaptation of different materials, must then be accumulated 
by years of work and study to produce a mechanic in any 
one of the various pursuits. 

Carpentry. — Of all the wood-working trades carpentry is 
the most general. It includes the cutting and framing of 
large timbers and rough planks and boards for building 
houses, bridges, trestles, piers, ship-frames, and the like. 
The form, size, and arrangement of the timbers necessary to 
resist the strains are designed by an engineer or architect, 
but the details, and especially those of the joints, must be 
determined and laid out by the carpenter. The woods made 
use of in carpentry are usually pine, hemlock, spruce, oak, 
and chestnut. The tools employed are the larger hand-saws, 
ax, adz, strong chisels, brace and large bits, hammer, and 
mallet ; and for marking, a chalk-line, tape measure, large 
steel square, and carpenter's pencil, together with plumb-line 
or level ; as a general thing, these complete the outfit. 

Joinery differs from carpentry in that the work is smaller 
and made smoother; and the form, size, and joints estab- 
lished by experience and long usage are constructed to give 
a finished appearance as well as strength. All the commoner 
and fancy woods, together with bone, ivory, and some of the 
metals, are used in the many branches of joinery. The tools, 
besides those of the carpenter, include the finer saws, chisels, 
and gouges, the various forms of planes, smaller boring-tools, 
and measuring-tools, such as try-squares, bevels, gauges, 
compasses, and finely divided rules. 

As necessary adjuncts to joinery we have turnery and 
carving, with modified forms of chisels and gouges for or- 
namental work; and painting for finishing and preserving 
work. 



PARASITIC PLANTS. 41 

Some of the applications of joinery create distinct trades, 
such as cabinet and furniture making ; stair, sash, and door 
making; pattern and model making; carriage and boat 
building, and cooperage — all of which require special woods 
and modified forms of tools adapted to the particular and 
various forms and joints peculiar to each. 

In America there are many mechanics well versed in 
both carpentry and joinery of ordinary house-building, and 
who are known by the general name of carpenter. 

Parasitic Plants. 

The forms of plant-life destructive to living trees and 
lumber belong to the higher orders of the group Fungi. 
These are parasites — that is, they do not possess chlorophyl 
(the green matter common to the higher orders of plants), and 
therefore do not assimilate or digest food for themselves, but 
live on the digested and structural material of others. They 
are developed from minute spores, grow and decay very 
rapidly, and contain a large amount of nitrogen in their 
composition. 

The structure of these fungi consists of two portions — a 
tangle of thread-like filaments having somewhat the appear- 
ance of the root-hairs in the higher orders of plants, and 
which have for their function the absorbing of nutritive 
material for the fungus ; and a denser portion composed of 
straight filaments, which form on their extremities the spore- 
bearing cells. 

In developing, the fungus starts from the spore, which 
corresponds to the seed of the higher orders. This spore 
sends out a long filamentous tube which, as it progresses, 
gives off branches, and these in their turn branch until the 
tangle of filaments called the mycelium is formed. This my- 
celium may have long and separated filaments, as in the 
underground portion of mushrooms, or it may have the fila- 
ments massed together, as seen in some polyporous fungi 
under the bark of trees. When the mycelium has absorbed 
sufiicient nourishment to produce spores, it sends out the 
straight branches usually into the light. The mycelium is 



42 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 



about the same in all the different fungi ; the variations in 
the form and color of the spore-bearing portion, and the char- 
acteristics of the spores, giving to each kind its place in clas- 
sification. 

The exact conditions which cause the spore to develop a 
mycelium are not known, but it may be generally stated that 
it must find a resting-place containing nutritive elements 
peculiarly suited for its growth, and, as accompanying con- 
ditions, warmth, moisture, ammonia, and an absence of strong 
light. 

Some of the fungi obtain their food from the contents of 
the living cells of the plant, so that the mycelium destroys 
by entering and depleting the sap-wood of the tree. In others 
the mycelium secretes a peculiar juice, which has the power 
of decomposing the lignin of the heart- wood, and converting 
it back into cellulose, which is dissolved and absorbed by the 
fungus. The latter destroys by removing those elements 
which give to wood its strength, and causes a condition in 
the tree or lumber known as decay or rot. 

In the heart-wood the vessels and cells facilitate the 
growth of the fungus in the direction of the grain, while its 
progress across the grain is comparatively 
slow. In passing to adjoining cells the 
filaments of the mycelium may go through 
the pores, or by the solvent action of its 
secretion make openings for itself. 

The extent to which these fungi will 
grow depends on the supply of food mate- 
rial, so that, once established in the stem of 
a tree, they may spread until the entire 
structure is consumed. If their filaments 
pass through the soil, like those of some of 
the toadstools, many trees may be affected and destroyed by 
one fungus. The innumerable mass of spores given off by 
the fungus would seem to predict the entire destruction of 
timber-trees, but fortunately this is prevented by the difficul- 
ty of satisfying the peculiar requirements necessary for the 
development of the spores. 




Fig. 17.— Mycelium of 
fungus piercing wood- 
cells, a, filaments ; 6, 
holes formed by fun- 
gus. 



PARASITIC PLANTS. 



43 



Among the parasitic fungi those which are especially de- 
structive to wood belong to the group Hymenomycetes, or 
those having naked spores growing on exposed surfaces. In 
the agarics, or toadstools, these surfaces are thin, flat plates, 
called gills. In the polypores, or tree-fungi, the spore sur- 
faces are tubes whose openings constitute the pores. In 
Meridius, or tear-fungus, the spore surfaces are shallow cavi- 
ties. 

The toadstool {Agaricus melleus) is very destructive to 
many trees, including the firs, pines, beech, and oak. Its 
mycelium consists of long, dark filaments several inches be- 
low the surface of the ground, that gain 
access to the wood by attacking the roots 
and sending its filaments up into the 
stem. The spore-bearing portion is fre- 
quently seen in the autumn at the base of 
dead trees ; it is yellowish, and has the 
gills extending partly down the stem, on 
which is a well-marked ring. Besides 
scattering its spores, the danger from this 
fungus consists in its power to send fila- 
ments through the soil from one tree to 
another. 

The tree-fungus {PoJyporus annosus) 
is very destructive to the pines and firs. 
Its mycelium is white, silky, and forces 
its way through the bark of the roots into 
the living cells, and from them into the heart-wood. The 
spore-bearing portion may appear on the lower part of the 
trunk or upon the roots underground. The porous surface 
is turned upward and the spores transported by insects or 
burrowing animals from root to root. The Polyporus sul- 
phurus is one of the best known of the destructive fungi, 
and attacks almost every kind of tree. Its mycelium devel- 
ops from spores which lodge in the stump of broken or 
sawed branches, and passes downward into the stem con- 
suming the tissue as it goes. Its sporing portion is bright 
yellow on the under or porous side and red above, usually 




Fig. 18. — Toadstool, a, 
stem ; b, umbrella top ; 

c, rinp, attached to the 
top before it expands ; 

d, gills ; e, filaments 
forming the mycelium. 



44 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 




Fig. 19. — Polypore 
growing on a living 
locust-tree. 



projecting from the decayed stump of the branch or in ad- 
vanced cases from the side of the stem. 

P. pini is similar to the P. sulphurus, 
and is a wound-parasite on the pines. 

P. fulvus is also a pine-tree fungus, pe- 
culiar in its action, in that it does not dis- 
solve the lignified parts of the cell, but the 
thin membranous substance which unites 
the cells, thus setting the cells free. P. 
dryadeus acts in a similar way in oak-trees. 
Merulius lacrymans affects pine and 
spruce timber in houses, and especially the 
ends of joists and beams in contact with 
damp brick or stone walls. Its mycelium penetrates the 
end wood, causing dry rot and forms on the surface of the 
wood and adjacent brick-work a flat, moist mass which de- 
velops on its under side shallow spore cavities. All fungi 
contain large quantities of water, but the lacrymans fre- 
quently holds an excess which exudes in small drops from 
its spore surface. 

The Dcedalia is closely related to the Polyporus, and is 
parasitic on white cedar and C5'"press. 

Among the higher forms of fungi the Dematium gigan- 
teum is very destructive to oak ; noted cases of its ravages 
being the destruction of oak piles along the sides of the Canal 
du Midi, Toulouse, and the destruction of the Foudroyant, a 
sixty-gun vessel, in two or three years. 

The moist condition of standing timber adapts it to the 
attacks of the fungus mycelium. In cut timber, warmth and 
moisture, with bad ventilation and imperfect seasoning, all 
favor the growth of the fungus. An examination of the 
wood, as the mycelium progresses, shows at first a darkening, 
usually of a brown tint, due to the action of the fungus secre- 
tion on the wood. Then the wood becomes yellowish, with 
black spots surrounded by white masses of cellulose, derived 
from the decomposed lignin of the cell-walls. This cellulose 
is slowly absorbed by the mycelium, the wood assumes a 
light-brown color, and is very soft and brittle. When the 



TIMBER-BORERS. 45 

thin membrane which unites the cells becomes dissolved, 
then the wood loses its form and breaks down into a brown 
powder, leaving a hollow trunk. 

TIMBER-BORERS. 

From the outer bark to the innermost heart-wood, all 
trees have enemies, more numerous if not more destructive 
than man. If we go to the nearest saw-mill or wood-pile, 
almost the first thing we notice is the worm-eaten appear- 
ance that so many timbers present. If, now, we stop and 
examine one of these logs with a little care, we may make 
out the directions of the borings, and probably find the cause 
of these depredations in the form of a small, white-bodied 
grub. A little further study of the various woods in the 
neighborhood will show us : 

1. That borings in the same log may be made by different 
kinds of grubs. 

2. That special kinds of borers infest certain kinds and 
conditions of woods. 

3. That the softer parts of the tree, such as sap-wood or 
wood in decay^ are far more frequently infested than the 
harder parts. 

4. That, on account of the more porous structure, the 
grub is apt to follow the grain of the timber, rather 
than pass through a number of more compact rings of 
growth. 

We have thus far been considering the case of wood in 
the green state, but we may find that these principles of 
borers may be applied as well to seasoned woods, save that 
this class is not usually attacked until decay has commenced. 
Any method of softening the wood, as heat, cold, or moisture, 
aids its destruction by insects. The destruction of timbers 
under water such as wharf or bridge piers, or ship-bottoms, 
is hardly a part of the present theme. It may be noted, 
however, that what the insect does on land, the mollusk, 
boring sponge, and marine worm accomplish in salt water ; 
and that such destruction is apt to be most rapid near the 
low-water mark. 



46 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKINQ. 



Thus far we have seen where the borings occur; let us 
now consider the insect itself, and its method of work. 

Probably all the borings we have so far seen have been 
the work of beetle-grubs. We must remember that beetles, 
like butterflies, and like nearly every other insect, must pass 
through a series of changes or transformations before they 
become what we regard as beetles. The egg, laid by the 
adult beetle on the proper food-supply hatches into a minute 
grub. This grub, or larva, sets at once to feeding, grows con- 
tinually, and sheds or molts its outgrown skins until it 





Fig. 20.— Oak-pruner. 



Fig. 21.— Its larva. Fig. 22.— Its pupa. 



attains a limit of size. Thence the insect passes into a curi- 
ous, mummy-like pupa stage ; and it is from this dormant 
state of transition that the beetle finally emerges. Keeping 
in mind this life-history, we may see how from the egg in 
some crevice of bark the grub has steadily eaten its way in- 
ward to its proper food-supply, whether in sap-wood or heart- 
wood, and has there grown and prospered. As the period of 
this feeding life in many borers extends over years, we may 
understand how much damage is apt to be done! The grub 
spends its time feeding and resting, frequently retracing its 
way to the outer opening, and enlarging its gallery when- 
ever necessary. A large amount of the waste sawdust, some- 
times freshly cut, sometimes glued into pellets by the insect's 
secretions, is continually being pushed out of the boring and 
allowed to drop to the ground, whitening the bark of the 
tree and readily revealing the insect's whereabout. When 
about to transform into the pupa the grub usually fills up 



TIMBER-BORERS. 47 

the outer opening with chippings, stuck together, in order to 
conceal itself from enemies, especially from the sharp-eyed 
woodpecker. Sometimes, instead of this method of protec- 
tion, the insect will inclose itself in a strongly made cocoon 
of chippings ; but in either case the glue-like matrix is readily 
dissolved by a secretion of the escaping insect. 

The way in which the grub is enabled to bore into the 
hardest woods is certainly of singular interest, and gives 
another example of the wonderful muscular development of 
the insect, more wonderful than the leg-muscles of the grass- 
hopper or even than the wing-muscles of the humming-bird 
moth. If we take any common beetle, whether perfect or in 
the grub stage, and examine for a moment the mouth parts, 
we may readily make out a pair of short, thick jaws, or 
mandibles, moving side wise, reminding us of the tinsmith's 
shears, protected by flap-like lips, one in front and one be- 
hind. It may be seen, from the way the lips are hinged at 
their bases, that they may serve to hold the object to be cut, 
and that they are aided in this by a pair of small, jointed ap- 
pendages inserted near the under lip. The mandibles them- 
selves, if more closely examined, will be seen, like the shears, 
to press their cutting edges together as they meet side by 
side, but we must note that the cutting edges are short and 
curved, somewhat like the edge of a gouge. The pivot on 
which the jaws rotate is located at the extreme outer margin 
of the mouth, and the heavy muscles which start from the 
back of the insect's head are attached solidly to the movable 
jaw between the pivot and curved, or gouge-like cutting edge, 
so as to gain an immense leverage. The boring is in reality 
a process of countersinking, the insect frequently changing 
from a right to left motion, to one from left to right, and it 
is by some believed that in this change the jaws are sharp- 
ened. As a rule it may be stated that the jaw of a hard- 
wood borer has a short, strong, cutting edge, and that the 
particles of wood cut are exceedingly minute. So nicely are 
the cutting powers adjusted that instances are recorded of 
the boring of sheet-iron by an escaping beetle. A Central 
American wood-beetle (Zopherus), kept alive this winter in a 



48 



EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 





Fig. 23.— Mouth-parts of Zophei-us Mexicanus. 



TIMBER-BORERS. 



49 



glass jar at college, found no difficulty in cutting its way 
out, of an evening, through a covering of sheet-lead one six- 
teenth inch thick. 

Of the common borers we may name a few of the more 
important. The Buprestids and the related beetles are well 






Fig. 24.— Buprestid. 



Fig. 25. — Pine-weevil. 



Fig. 26.— Clytus. 



recognized as among the most destructive and most numer- 
ous ; a number of species, represented in Fig'. 24 by Buprestis 
Virginica, living in pine timbers. The grub of the hand- 
some Painted Clytus, so common among the flowers of the 
golden-rod, infests locust-trees, that of the Clytus speciosa 
is destructive to maples. Although the Weevils are usually 
spoken of as the fruit and grain destroyers, their reputation 
seems equally bad among timbers. One of the most common 
of beetles, represented by numbers of species, we find them 
infesting every kind of tree from bark to heart- wood, and 
especially destructive to felled timbers. It is to a species of 



Explanation of Figure 23. 

1. Dorsal aspect of the head of Zopherus Mexicanus : I, iabrum ; p, palpus ; c, clypeus ; e, 

eye ; a, antenna. 

2. Inner face of the Iabrum : 6, fringing bristles ; ni, insertion of muscles ; h, deep hmge, 

with insertion of muscles joining to clvpeus. 

3. Ventral aspect of the head : I, labruiii ; p, palpus ; md, mandible ; li, labium ; mx, 

maxilla ; mt, mentum ; a, antenna ; ih, thorax. 

4. Ventral aspect of the left maxilla with its palpi : ep, external palpus ; ip, mternal 

palpus. 

5. Inner face of the labium : h. bristles of tongue-groove ; m, insertion of tongue-muscles ; 

h, hinge, connecting the labium with the mentum. 

6. Longitudinal- vertical section of the head : «, thorax ; c, clypeus ; I, Iabrum ; md. man- 

dible ; U, labium : mm, muscles of the mandible ; mh, muscles moving the head on the 
thorax ; o, oesophagus. 

7. Ventral aspect of the right mandible : e, cutting edge ; cd, double-headed pivot or con- 

dyle ; mm, insertion of the muscles. 

8. External lateral aspect of the right mandible : A, the hinge ; c, the condyle ; 1, 2, direc- 

tion of cutting movement. 

From the Journal of the New York Microscopical Society, July, 1888. 
4 



50 



EXERCISES IN WOOD^WORKINO. 



weevil we are indebted for the worm-eaten appearance pre- 
sented by old carved-oak furniture. So often, indeed, are 
these borings regarded as an evidence of the antiquity of 
furniture, that many European dealers have been known to 
imitate their presence by a charge of fine bird-shot. 

The large Roebuck beetle, or Horn-bug {Lucanus dama, 





Fig. 27.— Saw-beetle. 



Fig. 28.— Horn-bug. 



Fig. 28), is fortunately at present rather uncommon ; the 

grub attains the size of a man's thumb after a six years' life 

spent in boring forest trees. 

Another large borer is the common brown Saw-Beetle 

{Prionus unicolor), named from its saw-like feelers. It in- 
fests pine-trees, and may be 
taken as the type of the de- 
structive saw-beetle family. 

Besides the beetles nearly 
every other order of insects 
has members more or less de- 
structive as borers. Among 
wasps, for example, we are 
surely all familiar with the 
large Carpenter - Bee (Xylo- 
carpa Virginica), so common 
about the posts and railings 




Fig. 29.— Carpenter-bee. 



TIMBER-BORERS. 



51 



of our country porches, which bores a gallery for its young 
large enough to admit a finger. 




Fig. 30.— Carpenter-moth. 

As another example we may mention a moth, not uncom- 
mon about the city, whose caterpillar lives in the hard yellow 
locust, the Carpenter-Moth {Xyleutes rohinice). 

Before closing, it would perhaps be of interest to say a 
few words of the relation of insects to knarls or burls. These 
knotty outgrowths may occur on any tree, both on branch 
and trunk, but become valuable only when of a size suitable 
for cabinet-work or veneer-cutting. The wood in such cases 
is abnormally hard, is dark and mottled in color, and usually 
presents a curled, wavy grain. 

The origin of burls has as yet been but little studied. It 
is, however, usually conceded that these deformations, like 
the well-understood galls, were originally produced by in- 
sects ; that the young grubs feeding upon and irritating the 
most delicate tissues, have caused the plant to form the 
irregular accumulation of new wood-cells, both in and about 
the injured part. That this formation will go on for ages 
after the cause has disappeared seems to have been well es- 
tablished, and it is often found that in after-years the burl 
may fail to exhibit the slightest trace of its insect origin. 

As in the formation of galls, the insects that cause these 
deformations are not confined to an isolated group, but 
belong to a number of families in no less than five different 



52 EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

orders. The beetle-larvae, namely, Buprestids and Weevils, 
are usually regarded as the typical burl-formers. 

Preservation of Wood. 

To preserve wood it must be protected from those causes 
which induce warping, checking, and discoloration ; be re- 
moved from those conditions which favor the development 
of fungi and the boring of insects. 

Attention must first be given to the seasoning of the 
wood. The logs should be sawed into lumber as soon as pos- 
sible after cutting, or, if they have been immersed in water, 
immediately on removal from the water, then stacked in the 
open air and allowed to remain until thoroughly seasoned, 
or be subjected to some other drying process now in use. 
If the logs are to be shipped a long distance, or remain un- 
sawed for even a few weeks, it is necessary to remove the 
bark and coat the surface, particularly the ends of the 
log, with a thick coat of tar or paint, to retard evapora- 
tion. From most logs the sap-wood should be removed, to 
prevent the attacks of fungi and insects. The sap-wood of 
lignum- vitse is allowed to remain, to prevent checking in the 
heart-wood. 

Exposure of the raw surface of wood to the alternate 
action of rain or moisture and sunlight causes a discolora- 
tion called weather-stain, which penetrates into the tissue and 
renders the surface unfit for finished work. If exposed for 
a long time, the softer portions are worn away, giving a 
weather-beaten effect. To protect smoothed boards from the 
action of the weather, they are oiled, painted, or varnished. 
Sawed and weather-beaten surfaces require a large quantity 
of paint to cover them, and may be whitewashed or coated 
with some other lime preparation. 

Few woods can resist the constant alternation of damp- 
ness and dryness occurring in those portions of timber in 
contact with the soil. Here we have the most favorable con- 
dition for the attacks of fungi and eventually decay or rot. 
The ends of beams and joists resting on damp walls, posts 
set in stone foundations, fences and railroad-ties, are well- 



PRESERVATION OF WOOD. 53 

known examples of wood exposed to this condition. Those 
woods which have the least tendency to decay in contact 
with the soil are the cypress, redwood, cedar, locust, and 
white oak. The others require some one of the various arti- 
ficial means to preserve them. 

Charring, in which the wood is held for a few minutes in 
a fire until the surface is evenly and completely converted 
into charcoal. This will be effectual only in well-seasoned 
woods, because, if the wood checks after the operation, fungus- 
spores may germinate in the check and cause rotting of the 
wood. A specimen observed by the author had a large, well- 
developed polypore in a stick that had been charred only 
one year. 

Creosote. — The protective substance developed in charring 
seems to be creosote, which is one of the best preservatives 
we have. The ends of timbers are placed in the creosote until 
they have drawn up into their pores a sufficient quantity, 
and, as long as it gives a perceptible odor to the wood, fungi 
and insects, including even the white ants, leave it alone. 

Wood-Tar and Coal-Tar are quite frequently used in Amer- 
ica as preserving coats for wood. They are to be recom- 
mended as cheap and effective, and especially adapted to 
out-of-door structures. 

Faint. — Although the so-called metallic paint, in which 
an oxide of iron is the basis, and common paint, with car- 
bonate of lead as a basis, have been used to a great extent 
for preserving wood, they are desirable only for those por- 
tions of wooden structures not in contact with the soil. In 
any event, they need renewal every two or three years to 
continue their preservative action. 

Many chemical solutions have been used to protect wood 
from fungi, insects, and even from fire. Of these a ten-per- 
cent solution of sulphate of copper, in which the wood is 
placed until its cells and vessels have absorbed a sufficient 
quantity, is the most prominent. A mixture, of one part of 
silicate of sodium and three of water, applied to the wood, 
renders it fire-proof and free from the attacks of parasites. 
Acid solutions of various alums, together with sulphates of 



54: EXERCISES IN WOOD-WORKING. 

zinc and potassium, have been strongly recommended. For 
railroad-ties a solution of rosin and paraffin in benzine has 
been used effectually. In most of these solutions the wood 
is simply immersed ; but, to render the absorption very com- 
plete, the air is first removed by vacuum-pumps, and the 
wood then immersed in the preserving fluid. 

Wood will not decay as long as it is kept well ventilated 
and dry. It may become brittle with age, but no sign of 
fungus growth will make its appearance. This is shown in 
the wood of old pieces of furniture and the interior wood- 
work of houses, which the coat of paint or varnish has kept 
perfectly sound. 

The opposite condition, in which the wood is constantly 
covered by water, will also preserve it ; as examples of this, 
we have the oak of vessels sunken for a hundred years or 
more, and the remains of ancient lake-dwellers in Switzer- 
land and England. It is because of this peculiar preservative 
action of water that foundations of great structures of gran- 
ite and marble are laid upon the tops of wooden piles, driven 
below the low-water mark. 

In America, with its bountiful supply of wood, which is 
easily obtained and cheap, little attention has been paid to 
means of preserving it. But now we begin to note the result 
of extravagant and unchecked destruction of timber-lands 
by the increasing scarcity of some of the ordinary kinds, and 
in the attempts made to preserve railroad-ties. 



PART SECOND. 
TOOLS-DRA WING— EXERCISES. 



WOOD-WOEKING. 



In arranging a workshop, the position of the work-bench with 
regard to the light is of prime importance. For carpentry and 
general joinery, the light should be at the head of the bench, so 
that it can pass under the try-square, and to avoid awkward posi- 
tions in testing work. The turner and carver should have the 
light come down on the top of their work, from a sky-light, or 
have the lathe or bench in front of a tall window, the lower part 
of which is screened by tool-racks. 

Although some workmen are obliged to keep their tools in 
chests for convenience in moving, or in drawers under the bench, 
the better plan is to have them in a closet within easy reach, above 
the bench or against the wall opposite the bench. The closet 
should have the doors and sides furnished with strips of wood 
notched to hold the various tools, nearly all of which may be sup- 
ported on such racks. Each tool thus has its own peg or place, in 
which it is kept when not in use. Even in a chest or in drawers 
the saws, chisels, gouges, bits, and other edge tools, are separated 
by notched strips to prevent injury to their edges. 

The work-bench itself, made of hard wood, preferably maple, 
requires some care to preserve a smooth and clean top. The saws, 
chisels, boring-tools, nails, screws, or other sharp tools, must never 
cut into the bench. The vise should be brought square to its 
work, and no irregular or metallic objects should be fastened in it. 
Frequently brush the top of the bench and clean off drops of glue, 
paint, or varnish, immediately. Make no pencil-marks on the top, 
as they soil the work. 



CARE OF TOOLS. 57 

Have on the bench only those tools to be used in the work at 
hand ; all others must be put away. 

The tools should be used only for the purpose for which they 
are intended ; measures and marking-tools not to be used as levers, 
the try-square not as a hammer or screw-driver, nor the compasses 
as a boring-tool. 

The polished surfaces of steel tools should be carefully pro- 
tected from moisture and especially from perspiration. To prevent 
rust, rub the bright parts frequently with a mixture of paraffine 
and vaseline, or equal parts of beeswax and tallow. If rust should 
appear, brighten the spot with some fine emery-cloth and oil, rub- 
bing always in the direction of the polish scratches. 

In working up old material, the greatest caution must be taken 
to prevent sawing and planing on nails, etc. 

In mortising, do not strike the chisel with the hammer, and on 
no occasion strike the hammer on its side. Planes must have their 
soles frequently rubbed with the wax or paraffine mixture ; always 
lay them on their side or on thin strips on the bench. 

The student should wear a long apron, without pockets, and 
made of strong material. Workmen use short aprons, and while 
building or in out-of-door work have the bottom turned up and 
sewed, to make a large pocket for nails and small tools. 

The work must be carefully protected from bruises by drop- 
ping, striking with hammer or other tools, and from chips on the 
bench. 

In all this training three things are to be aimed at : First, 
accuracy^ which in wood-working specially applies to marking and 
cutting ; second, Jinish, or smoothness ; and, third, quickness of ex- 
ecution. 

After marking out the work, it should be inspected and ap- 
proved by the instructor before cuts are made. Pencil-marks must 
always be light and fine, so as to be easily removed. 

When an exercise is finished, the work should have the name 
or number of the student and the date written on it, the bench 
brushed off, and all tools cleaned and put away. 



S8 WO OB- WORKING. 



Tools. (Plate A.) 

The following are the ordinary measuring, marking, and holding 
tools : 

1. Four-fold, two- foot rule. The graduations of inches and even 
fractions of an inch running from right to left. 

2. Full size of portion of inside divided into, a, sixteenths ; 6, one 
of the scales usually found on the carpenter's rule. It is the three- 
quarter inch to one foot scale. 

3. Portion of the metric rule. This rule is one meter long, divided 
into ten segments, each one decimeter^ which is divided into ten cen- 
timeters^ and each centimeter into ten millimeters, or thousandths of 
a meter. 

4. Full size of one end of the metric rule. Note that the centi- 
meters are numbered from left to right. 

5. A circle is divided into three hundred and sixty degrees ; a 
quarter-circle, a, has ninety degrees, and measures a right or square 
angle. The arc, 6, measures a thirty degrees opening ; c, forty-five 
degrees ; d, sixty degrees. 

6. Carpenter's steel square, used for measuring and marking tim- 
ber ; the long side twenty -four inches, the short side sixteen ; the outer 
edges graduated into sixteenths, the inner into quarters or eighths. 

7. Try-square, rosewood handle faced with brass, steel blade. 

8. Small steel square for testing fine work. 

9. Sliding T-bevel, for marking or testing other than a square angle. 

10. Carpenters use three sizes of pencils : a short stick of plum- 
bago, three quarters inch square, a large pencil (see section), and an 
ordinary No. 3. 

11. Bench-knife ; at a, round taper-point for scratching ; at 6, a 
knife-edge. 12. Marking-gauge : a, the bar ; b, the head. 

13. Spring compasses. 14. Pliimb-bob and line. 

15. Spirit-level : a for horizontal, b for vertical surfaces. 

16. Bench-vise : a, bench-screiv. The vise is adjusted by the screw 
and a strip containing holes or notches, fastened to the bottom of the 
vise. 

17. Bench-stop of hard maple, about two inches square. There is 
a great vai'iety of iron bench-stops. 

18. Pine bench-hook. 19. Iron bench-dog. 20. Iron clamp. 
21. Hand-screw. 22. Oil-stone. 23. Oil-slip. 24. Oil-can. 
25. Miter-box with one side projecting to catch against the 

bench-top. 26. Glue-pot : a, for the water ; b, for the glue. 

27. Carpenter's horse. 



TOOLS. 



59 



Plate A. 





a 


1 


r 'M 


III III 


h' 




3 

Ihllli 


e 

ihlil 


hlilili 



nTT 




60 WO OB- WORKING. 



Tools. (Plate B.) 

The chief edge-tools used by the carpenter c.vc : 

1. Rip-saw and cross-cut, apple-wood or beech handles and steel 
blades. 

2. Compass-saw. 

3. Back-saw, a very thin blade stiffened by an iron or brass back. 
Also called tenon-saw. 

4. Frame-saw. 

5. Float, like a saw, but with wide teeth. 

6. Chisel, with apple-wood or hickory handle, a bevel side, and a 
flat side or face. 

7. Gouge, the face is the hollow side. 

8. Jack-plane : a, stock ; b, top ; c, sole, in front the toe and 
behind the heel ; d, handle ; e, wedge, driven behind the throat ; /, 
iron. There are three large planes used by carpenters : jack-plane, 
sixteen inches long, sometimes furnished with a single iron ; fore- 
plane, twenty-two inches long; and jointer, twenty-six or more inches 
in length. 9. Plane-iron. 

10. Cap. 11. Double iron, cap and iron united. 

12. Wedge. 13. Smoothing-plane. 

14. Rabbet-plane, of which there are several forms, some with 
irons the full width of the sole, some with a small side cutter, and 
some with stops. 15. Iron of rabbet-plane. 

16, 17. Show the shapes of paring match-planes. 

18, 19. Shapes of match -plane irons. 

20. Shape of the sole of a hollow. 

21. Shape of a round. 22. Shape of a sash-plane. 

23. Ploiv ; recent form with iron stock and apple-wood handle ; 
a, iron, secured by a thumb-screw ; b, fence ; c, stop for regulating 
depth of cut ; d, handle. 24. One of the set of irons. 

25. The sole with its iron, which when attached to the stock makes 
a fillister or rabbet-plane. 

26. Scratch-plane for preparing wood before gluing. 

27. Portion of the scratch-plane iron, showing its teeth, full size. 

28. Brace, with head, handle, and bit-holder. 29. Twist-bit. 
30. Center-bit. 31. Auger-bit. 32. Rose countersink. 
33, 34. Half-round reamer. 35. Draw-knife. 

36. Spoke-shave. 37. Screw-driver. 38. Claw-hammer. 

39. Bench-ax. 40. Wooden mallet. 

Besides which there are rasps, files, brad-awls, and many other 
tools for special purposes. 



TOOLS. 



61 



Plate B. 




■1 



iJO 



C_!I^^5^^^^^5E^^^ 



CrOlJfe^ 



CXEI^S 



7f ck s 




/ l "">- ~4&:^ 


^ / 


^ ^ „ 


1 




62 WO OB- WOREIN G. 



Drawing. (Plate C.) 

The distance between the heavy lines in Fig. 1, measured accord- 
ing to the scale, three quarters of an inch to one foot, will be found to 
be 2 feet 3| inches. This measurement may be expressed by using 
the signs for feet and inches, or by writing a letter on the line and 
referring to the margin or notes for its value. Broken lines usually 
terminated by arrow-heads are used to show the extent of the meas- 
urement. 

In locating a circle, give the distances of its center or circumfer- 
ence from two known points (Fig. 2). An oblique line must have 
both ends determined, or one end, its length, and inclination 
(Fig. 2). 

The drawings of any object shoxild consist of as many parts as are 
necessary to show all its dimensions. Usually three are sufficient, as 
in Fig. 3, in which a is the elevation, b the plan, and c the end-view 
or side elevation, of a rectangular block. 

Sections through an object are frequently shown in drawings. If 
it is cut across the grain, it is shaded by straight parallel oblique lines, 
a and b. Fig. 4, which show two views of a section through the block, 
Fig. 3, on the line e /. Sections with the grain are shaded by lines 
parallel with the grain ; thus, a vertical section through the line g h 
of Fig. 3 would appear as at c. Fig. 4. 

Generally one perspective of an object will show a sufficient num- 
ber of its details to enable a workman to understand its form. From 
a true perspective, as the cube in Fig. 5, measures can not be easily 
obtained ; therefore, in illustrating the following exercises, false or 
parallel perspective is employed. 

Fig. 6 represents a cube drawn in right and left parallel perspec- 
tive. It is seen that surfaces and lines parallel with the plane of the 
paper are drawn their full size and correct shape. The receding hori- 
zontal lines are represented by shorter lines inclined at an angle of 
45°. To obtain this shortened length, the full length of the line is 
laid off on a vertical line drawn from the nearest end of the receding 
one, and from the upper end of the length thus obtained an oblique 
line at an angle of 30° is let fall ; where it intersects the 45° line is 
the shortened length, as shown in Fig. 6. 

Fig. 7, a, b, and c show the elevations and plan of a work-bench, 
drawn to a scale of i" to 1' ; d and e show the details of the vise, i" 
tol'. The irregular line-shading is used to represent wooden sur- 
faces. 



DRAWING. 



63 



Plate C. 



%-tt.-Z% in. 

z'z%--- 



: a ■> 



Fig. 1 





Fig. 6 



1 30° 



Fig. 2 







Fig. fy 



Fig. 6 




64 ORDINARY TOOLS. 

Exercise 1 .—Use of the Chisel. 

Material. — A rough block of pine, about 2" square, and 8" long. 
Work. — 1. To cut one side of the block perfectly smooth and flat. 
2. To cut an adjacent side smooth, flat, and at right angles with 
the first side. 

Fasten the block lengthwise in the vise, so that about ly of it 
is above the bench-top. 

Hold the chisel in the right hand, the cutting edge obliquely to 
the direction of the grain, and inclined from the block a sufficient 
amount to make a thin shaving (a, h, Fig. 1). The fingers of the 
left hand should rest on the face of the blade, and guide the cutting 
edge. If additional strength is required to force the chisel through 
the wood, grasp the blade in the left hand. 

The surface is pared smooth with the chisel in the above posi- 
tion. To make the surface flat, turn the chisel on its face, as 
shown in Fig. 2, a and h ; cut very thin shavings in those places 
where the wood is too high, and avoid cutting in the low places. 

To test the surface, hold the try-square on various parts of the 
surface in the two positions, as shown in Fig. 3, a and ^, and note 
the light passing under the square at the low places. Handle the 
try- square with the left hand. If its edge is pressed or rubbed 
against the wood, it will mark the high places. Look along the 
block from end to end, to see whether the surface is twisted or 
warped. Also pass the fingers lightly over the surface, to note its 
irregularities. 

When smooth and flat, this surface of the block is called its 
face. Turn the block in the vise and fasten with its face outward. 
Pare the second side the same as the first, testing frequently for 
flatness. When nearly smooth and flat, remove the block and test 
the angle between the sides with the try-square, as shown in Fig. 4. 
Care must be taken to hold the try-square true to the face. 

When the second side is finished, mark it and the face with a 
pencil, as shown in Fig. 4. The edge of the block, toward which the 
marks point, is the face-edge, from which all measures are made. 

In using any sharp tool, care must be taken to avoid cutting the 
work-bench, the bench-stop, and particularly the hands. Always 
keep the hands behind the chisel-edge. 



CHISEL. 



65 




66 ORDINARY TOOLS. 

Exercise 2.— Use of the Chisel continued. 

Work. — 1. To mark the block of Exercise 1 for width of face. 

2. To cut the remaining sides so that the block will be 1^" 

square. 

3. To chamfer the edges. 

Fasten the block in the vise with face up and face-edge out- 
ward. Hold the rule as shown in Fig. 1, so that it measures ex- 
actly ly from the face-edge, and make a small mark with the 
pencil along the end of the rule. Adjust the rule by bending the 
first finger of the left hand underneath it against the face-edge 
(Fig. 2), until the point of the pencil, held against the end of the 
rule, comes on the measured mark, and draw the rule and pencil 
along the block, producing a line parallel to and 1^" from the face- 
edge. Mark the side opposite to the face of the block in the same 
way. 

Pare the third side down to the pencil marks, being careful not 
to pass below them. Mark and pare the fourth side. 

In cutting end-wood with the chisel, considerable force is neces- 
sary to push and guide the tool. Small shavings must be cut at a 
time, and, in order to leave a smooth surface behind it, the cutting 
edge mvist be very sharp. Instead of cutting straight down, the 
cut is oblique, as shown by the arrow in Fig. 3, or the chisel is in- 
clined and pushed in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 4. The 
block should rest on the bench- hook or a small waste board, in cut- 
ting the end- wood as above. ' 

Lay out the chamfer, as shown in Fig. 5, 1" from the ends of 
the block, and f " wide. Mark the lines parallel with the face- 
•edge, with the rule and pencil, and the cross marks with the try- 
square. Lay out the ends of the chamfer according to the meas- 
ures given in Figs. 6 and 7 ; the first is an ogee, and the second a 
bevel. 

In cutting the chamfer, use the chisel in the position shown in 
Fig. 1, Ex. 1, and great care must be taken to avoid cutting beyond 
the pencil marks. Cut the ends after the straight portion is 
finished. 

In Fig. 8 are shown some of the shapes given to chamfer 
ends. 



CHISEL. 



67 




68 ORDINARY TOOLS. 



Exercise 3.— Use of the Gouge. 

Material. — A block of dressed pine, 2" wide, 1\" thick, and about 6" 

long. 
Work. — To shape a molding with gouge and chisel. 

Lay out the block as shown in Fig. 1, using the measures 
as given in Fig. 2. The form of the molding, an ogee, as seen 
on the end of the block, a. Fig. 1, is sketched on the wood, or, 
as is the practice in shops, is marked on the end from a thin 
pattern. Fig. 3. The lines J, J, Fig. 1, are drawn by the rule and 
pencil. 

In cutting with the gouge, apply the same directions given for 
the use of the chisel. Cut small shavings, hold the gouge obliquely, 
as shown in Fig. 3, test frequently with the try-square, and avoid 
cutting beyond the marks. The hollow portion should be cut first 
with the gouge, then the small rectangular piece in the upper part 
of the molding cut out with the chisel, leaving what is called a 
quirk, and lastly the top rounded by the chisel. In cutting the 
quirk, the chisel is held by the blade and drawn along the pencil 
mark on the top of the block, cutting like a knife-edge, and the 
wood pared down to the bottom of the cut ; the chisel is then again 
used like a knife, and more pared off, this process being repeated 
until the entire quirk is cat. 

To return the molding, the end is given the same form as the 
face, «, Fig. 4. This form may be marked on the end, from a piece 
of molding held against it, by the marking-point of the bench- 
knife, or by measuring points along the curve with the rule, and 
marking through them with the pencil. The return is cut down 
upon a waste board with the gouge and chisel. In cutting across 
the grain with the gouge, it must have a circular motion, which is 
the same in effect as the oblique cut of the chisel. 

In drawings, the form of a molding is always indicated by a sec- 
tion of it, as shown at c, Fig. 4. 

In Fig. 5 is represented a core-box, made by pattern-makers. 
It is an example of gouge work. 

Fig. 6 shows a molding coped, or fitted to another. The shape 
of the end of a molding for coping may be obtained by sawing the 
end in a miter-box. 



GOUGE. 



69 




70 ORDINARY TOOLS. 



Exercise 4.-— Use of the Hammer. 

Material. — Sawed block of pine, 4" square and 16" long. 
Worh. — To strike blows on the block, in order to learn the right 
manner of holding the hammer. 

Grasp the handle of the hammer firmly, whether for a light or 
a heavy blow, and hold it so that its striking face is parallel with 
the surface of the wood (Fig. 1). Strike two or three light blows 
at one end of the block, and examine the impressions, which should 
be like those of a, Fig. 2 ; but if like J, Fig. 2, the hammer must 
be held better. Strike two or three again, and examine the prints 
of the hammer. Now strike several heavy blows, and note the re- 
sult. It is a common fault among students to draw the handle 
down, as in «, Fig. 3, in striking a hard blow, and in correcting 
this fault to give the opposite result (J, Fig. 3). If the print shows 
that the hammer falls as at c, Fig. 3, then it is not held sufficiently 
tight in the hand. 

For light blows a wrist motion is used, for ordinary blows a 
movement from the elbow, and for heavy blows a shoulder or com- 
bined movement of all the parts of the arm is necessary. 

Cut nails are wedge-shaped, and if driven the wrong way will 
spread the fibers and cause the wood to split ; but if driven the 
right way, break and compress the fibers without splitting the wood : 
a and 5, Fig. 4, show the cut nail in its proper position, c and d, 
Fig. 4, the wrong position. Pick up a cut nail near the smaller 
end, the thumb and finger will instantly determine the wedge from 
the parallel sides and place the nail properly on the wood. Some 
men pick up the nail near the larger end, but allow the third finger 
to determine its shape. "Wire nails do not need examination be- 
fore striking, but must be struck a direct blow, or they will bend. 

Fig. 5 illustrates a peculiar drawn blow of the hammer. Start- 
ing at fZ, it follows the direction of the broken line in its course ; 
the effect of which is to bend the nail in such a manner that it 
forces the board a close up to c, as shown at/. This blow is prac- 
ticed in nailing floors and clinching wrought nails. If the point a. 
Fig. 6, be struck light, drawn blows, it will curl, as shown at h. 
And if the blows are now drawn less, but made harder, the point 
will sink into the wood as at d, leaving a small and clean depression. 



HAMMER. 



71 




72 ORDINARY TOOLS. 



Exercise 5.— Use of the Jack-PIane. 

Material. — The block used in the previous exercise. 
Work. — 1. To adjust the iron of the plane. 

2. To plane two adjacent surfaces fiat and square. 

In adjusting a plane, hold it in the left hand, with the thumb 
in the throat and pressed against the iron, as in Fig. 1. Look 
along the sole and note the projection of the iron, as at a, Fig. 2. 
The iron should be highest in the middle, and gradually curving 
until it disappears near the edges of the sole, as shown at «, Fig. 3. 
If it projects too far, strike the plane lightly on the hard start, c, 
Fig. 1, until it recedes the required amount. If the iron does not 
project far enough, strike its top, «, Fig. 1. If the iron projects 
too much on one side, strike the iron near the top on the project- 
ing side. When the iron is properly adjusted, give the wedge a 
light blow to secure the iron. The block may be fastened in the 
vise. 

Hold the plane straight on the work, the left hand placed in 
front of the iron, properly, with the thumb on top and the fingers 
on the side. Stand firmly on the floor, with the right side close up 
to the bench, behind the block. At the beginning of the stroke, 
press down with the left hand only ; at the finish, remove the left 
and press with the right. Each shaving should be the entire 
length of the block. 

Examine the cut made by the iron ; it may be either too deep 
or too shallow. If the cut surface is rough («, Fig. 5), then the 
plane is working against the grain, and the block must be turned 
around. If smooth, as in Fig. 6, it is cutting with the grain. If 
the shavings do not curl in coming out of the throat, examine 
the position of the end of the cap ; for the jack-plane y to ^" 
back is proper, and for other planes about ^" {b, Fig. 5, and c, 
Fig. 6). 

Plane out all the saw marks or weather stains, and examine the 
surface for flatness and warping, as in Exercise 1. Plane and 
square the adjacent side, and mark the face-edge. 

In planing a warped board, the plane is sometimes pushed ob- 
liquely across the board, as shown by the arrows in Fig. 7, until 
flat, and then finished with straight strokes. 



JACK-PLANE. 



rs 




74 ORDINARY TOOLS. 



Exercise 6.— Plane continued, and Marking-Gauge. 

Material. — Same as before. 

Work. — 1. To smooth the two planed surfaces of the block with the 
smoothtng-plane. 

2. To mai'k with the gauge for the third side. 

3. To plane the third and fourth sides of the block. 

The smoothing-plane is adjusted the same as the jack-plane, ex- 
cepting that its iron is drawn back by a blow on the back of the 
stock. Its iron should just show, as in h, Fig, 3, Ex. 5, and should 
remove a very thin shaving. Smooth the face and adjacent side of 
the block, testing with the try-square, and marking over again the 
face-edge. 

Adjust the gauge, holding it in the left hand, thumb on the 
head; move the bar so that the marking-point is exactly 3^" 
from the head ; fasten the bar with the thumb-screw. In marking, 
hold the head in the left hand, thumb against the bar near the 
point (rt. Fig. 1). Incline the gauge as shown in the figure, 
until it makes a faint mark ; press the head of the gauge firmly 
against the face-edge, and mark the entire length of the block. 
Repeat, making the mark deeper, until it is sufficiently distinct. 
If the head of the gauge is not pressed against the face-edge, or if 
the point is forced in deeply at first, it is apt to follow the grain, 
as shown in Fig. 2, where the gauge makes a fault from a to h. 
Gauge all around 3^" from the face of the block, as shown in 
Fig. 3. 

Plane the edges of the third side down to the gauge-marks, as 
in Fig. 4; these beveled surfaces serve as guides. Then plane 
down the middle, being very careful not to go beyond the gauge- 
marks. 

Fig. 5 shows the manner of truing the edge of a board by using 
one side of the edge of the plane-iron. In the figure, c is the stock, 
a the high part of the edge. The fingers of the left hand are used 
as a guide, and pass along the side of the board at h. 

Fig. 6 shows one of the best forms of modern planes ; its adjust- 
ments are made with screws and levers : a and h fasten the iron, c 
moves the iron sideways, d regulates the depth of the cut, e is the 
iron, and / its caji. 



MARKING-GAUOE. 



75 




76 ORDINARY TOOLS. 

Exercise 7.— Use of the Rip-Saw. 

Material. — Squared block of the previous exercises. 
Work. — To saw the block into boards which may be planed to i" 
thick. 

Examine the rip-saw ; note that its teeth are about four and 
a half to an inch ; the angular opening 60°, and the slant of the 
tooth about 90° to the direction of the cut. In Fig. 1 the teeth 
are shown slanting toward the point, and are called hooked. At a. 
Fig. 2, the teeth are square, and at h are raked. The teeth are 
smaller near the point of the saw. The face of the teeth may be 
cut square across, as at a, Fig. 3, or obliquely as at h. In order 
that the saw may not bind, its teeth are set — that is, the points are 
bent, as at «, J, c, Fig. 3, alternately to one 
side and the other. The effect of the teeth 
on the wood-fibers shows that the action is 
tearing. Fig. 4 exhibits a magnified view 
of a section through a saw-kerf. 

Gauge all around the block ^" from its 
Fig.u "*" " face. Fasten the block vertically in the 
vise with its face outward. Hold the saw 
firmly in the right hand, against the thumb of the left acting as 
a guide (a. Fig. 7), and about ^" beyond the gauge-mark. Move 
the saw with short strokes, back and forth, a little above the wood ; 
let it gradually aiaproach and enter the wood. The weight of the 
saw must be sustained by the right hand while starting ; after it 
has entered fairly into the wood, let the saw cut by its own weight. 
Go slowly, and push the saw as straightly as possible. When the 
saw has penetrated as far as shown at a, Fig. 8, change to the op- 
posite side and saw down as shown at b ; change again, and con- 
tinue this alternation, keeping the saw all the while about ^" from 
the gauge-mark. 

In starting the saw, many workmen would begin at ^, Fig. 7, 
and draw the saw backward, resting on the wood. The saw cuts 
quickest if pushed at right angles to the grain, but if inclined, as 
in Fig. 6, requires less force. In sawing boards, use the horses for 
supports and test the position of the saw, as shown in Fig. 5, until 
practice gives a correct habit. 




EIP-SA W. 



77 




78 OBDINARY TOOLS. 

Exercise 8.— Use of the Cross-Cut. 

ilfafermZ.— Block of pine, 4" square and 16" long. 
Worh.—l. Plane the block to 3f " square. 
3. Practice sawing with cross-cut. 

Examine the cross-cut, and note the small, pointed teeth, shown 
enlarged at a. Fig. 1 ; look down on the tops of the teeth ; they ap- 
pear as at J, Fig. 1 ; look along the saw from the handle toward 
the point ; a depression is seen, made by the peculiar shape and set 
of the points of the teeth (c, Fig. 1). 

Plane the block carefully to 3f" square, observing instruction 
in Exercises 5 and 6. 

Measure and mark a point on the face-edge, \" from the right 
end. Hold the try-square, as shown at a. Fig. 3, firmly against the 
face-edge and coinciding with the pencil-mark. Draw a pencil- 
mark along the try-square. Then place the try-square in the posi- 
tion shown at 5, Fig. 2, and again mark along the square. 

Place the block on the bench-hook, with the marks toward you 
(Fig. 3). Hold the saw as directed in the previous exercise, the 
thumb used as a guide, and start the cut in the same way, begin- 
ning at the front or back of the face and on the pencil-mark. Let 
the weight of the saw do the cutting ; give all your attention to 
guiding. Avoid letting the point of the saw drop at the end of 
the stroke. Keep the movement of the teeth as parallel as pos- 
sible with the bench-top. Examine the sawed surface. 

Kepeat the exercise, this time using the knife for marking, and 
guiding the saw so that the kerf is to the right of the knife-mark. 
In Fig. 4, a represents the knife-mark 
and c the kerf. Eepeat again, this time 
sawing to the left of the knife-mark, as 
at J, Fig, 4 ; this last piece should be ex- 
actly ^" thick. Eepeat the exercise with 
oblique cuts, as shown in Fig. 5, always 
measuring and adjusting the try-square on 
the face-edge. Fig. 6 shows the appear- 
ance under the microscope of a section of pine-wood which has 
been sawed by a cross-cut. The fibers are bent and broken by the 
sharp points, showing the tearing action of the tool. 




OEOS^^CUT. 



79 



Ex.8. 




Fig. 1 




~^ 



Fig. 2 



y 



■^^ 




Fig. 3 








3^ 


/'a 


c^ 


^ 






^^^ 


/ 


d. 


/ 


f\a 


h 





Fig. 5 



80 SHAEPENma TOOLS. 

Sharpening Tools. (Plate D.) 

WITH THE OIL-STONE. 

To sharpen or whet a chisel, moisten the oil-stone with a few 
drops of oil ; hold the chisel by the blade in the right hand, as shown 
in Fig. 1, two or three fingers of the left pressing on the face of the 
chisel near the edge, a. The chisel is moved backward and forward 
the entire length of the stone, and maintained strictly at a certain 
angle, about 30° to 35°, depending on the kind of chisel and the 
work to be done with it ; for paring, thinner angles, and for mortising, 
thicker angles are used. 

In the forward movement (a to &, Fig. 2), the tool must be pressed 
hard on the stone, but lightly as it is drawn back ; and the surface 
formed at the cutting edge should be flat, as shown at c. 

Avoid a rocking motion, as shown in Fig. 3, in which the tool is 
started at too great an angle (a), which becomes less as it moves 
along, ending in an angle much too small, as at c. This fault, which 
is a very common one, gives to the edge a curved shape, as shown at 
d, Fig. 3. 

After the stone has worn the steel down to the edge, the chisel is 
turned on its face, flat on the stone, and moved forward lightly once 
or twice to remove the wire-edge caused by the grinding. 

To sharpen a plane- iron, hold it the same as the chisel, turned so 
as to bring the corners of the iron within the limits of the stone ; 
press with considerable force in the forward strokes, and keep the 
iron strictly at its proper angle, about 35°. 

The iron of the jack-plane must have a rocking motion sidewise, 
so as to preserve its curved edge. 

When the stone is small or narrow, a circular motion is given to 
the iron, as at a. Fig. 4. For the finishing touches, the iron is pushed 
forward lightly, raised from the stone coming back, and removing 
the wire-edge, as in the case of the chisel. 

To sharpen a gouge, hold it and the oil-slip as shown in Fig. 5. 
Give the slip a back-and-forward motion while the tool is turned to 
bring all parts of the edge to bear on the stone. Remove the wire- 
edge with the round side of the slip. 

Shoiild the surface of the oil-stone become hollow or uneven, it 
may be made flat by grinding with fine sand or medium emery on a 
flat stone or cast-iron plate. To remove oil which has hardened in 
the pores of the surface, the stone may be placed in boiling, soapy 
water, or in some strong alkaline solution. 



OIL-STONE. 



81 



Plate I). 





Fig. 3 



Fig. 4 




82 SHAEPENINa TOOLS. 

Sharpening Tools. (Plate E.) 

ON THE GRINDSTONE. 

The grindstone must be kept constantly wet with water while in 
use. Of the many positions in which the tool may be held against 
the grindstone, that shown at a, Fig. 1, is the easiest for a student. 
The handle, held in the right hand, rests on a boai'd at 6, the bevel is 
pressed against the stone at c, with the palm of the left hand, which 
is applied to the face of the tool. The angle of the ground surface is 
regulated by moving the handle nearer to or away from the stone. 

At d, Fig. 1, the angle of the bevel is regulated by moving the 
handle on the rest, and maintained by a finger held against the rest. 
At e, Fig. 1, and 6, Fig, 2, are shown positions used by workmen. 

The tool must not be held on one part of the stone, but con- 
stantly moved so as to wear the face of the stone evenly, as shown at 
a, Fig 2. 

For chisels, gouges, and planes, the angle is tested by a gauge, 
shown full size in Fig. 3, made of steel or brass, with an opening of 
20° to 25°, as shown at c, the value of the opening stamped on the 
gauge, and a hole at one end for a small chain fastened to the grind- 
stone-frame. The bevel of the tool, &, is placed in the opening, c, 
and its angle tested ; if too thin, the handle, 6, Fig. 1, must be drawn 
away from the stone, or brought nearer if too thick. When once 
determined a mark may be made on the rest at &, and the grinding 
continued until the bevel is brought down to the face. The edge is 
then tested with the try-square. 

Care must be taken to preserve the correct shape of plane-irons 
(see a, &, Fig. 3, Ex. 5), and particularly the edge, which must be 
square. 

Gouges are ground as shown in Fig. 4, so that the edge slants, and 
is square to the whetted surface, as shown by c, d. Fig. 4. For spe- 
cial work some gouges are ground just the opposite to the ordinary 
tool — that is, with the edge on the outer surface, at &, instead of a. 
Fig. 4. 

Fig. 5 represents a simple means of obtaining the bevel surface 
on a chisel. It is supported on the rest, 6, and held against the side 
of an emery-wheel. The wheel should be constantly oiled or wet 
with water. 

To remove hollows or grooves in the grindstone, hold a wrought- 
iron bar, pointing downward, resting on the support 6, Fig. 1, and 
with its end cutting into the high parts of the face ; after which, 
smooth the stone by holding a coarse sandstone against it. 



ORINDSTONE. 



83 



Plate E. 




rOi 



ta 



Fig. 2 




Fig. 1 




Fig. 3 



Fig. 4 





Fig. 5 



84 SHARPENING TOOLS. 

Sharpening Tools. (Plate F.) 

SAW-FILING. 

The easiest saw to file is the rip-saw, with teeth square across and 
standing- at 90°. Fasten the saw in the clamps as shown in Fig. 1. 
Pass a fiat, smooth file lightly over the teeth first, to reduce all the 
tops to the same level. Examine the teeth carefully, and deter- 
mine by the amount removed from the points which of them need 
the most filing, and whether on the square or beveled side. If the 
teeth are spaced irregularly, each filing should tend to correct the 
fault. 

The triangular file is held in the right hand, its point guided by 
the thumb and forefinger of the left. For filing large teeth the file 
should have slanting furrows (6, Fig. 2) ; for small teeth, finer and 
less oblique furrows (c. Fig. 2). Pressure is applied only during the 
forward stroke of the file, it being raised above the tooth or touching 
very lightly as it comes back, because the brittle cutting edges, 
which are shaped as at a. Fig. 2, are easily rubbed off, and the file 
may be ruined by a careless back-stroke. The file should cut in the 
direction of the set, as at 6 and c. Fig. 3. One or two strokes are 
usually sufficient to sharpen a tooth. The first, third, fifth, and so on, 
are filed first, then the saw is turned and the remainder filed. If the 
teeth are oblique, as in Fig. 4, then the direction of the file must be 
adjusted to fit this inclination, as shown by the arrows. 

In the cross-cut, the file is held pointing upward and toward the 
handle of the saw, as shown by the arrows a, a, and 6, 6, Fig. 5. As 
this always leaves a wire-edge on each tooth, some prefer to file 
exactly in the opposite direction — that is, pointing downward and 
toward the point of the saw. 

After filing, the saw should be set. For this important operation 
a good instrument must be used. Crude instruments, such as a 
block of wood, a nail punch, and a hammer, in the hands of an inex- 
perienced workman, are more likely to rUin the saw than to benefit 
it. The teeth must be set with great regularity, in order to secure a 
smooth and straight cut. Morrill's instrument, shown in Figs. 6 and 
7, acts by bending the point of the tooth with the punch c, the amount 
of the set being regulated by adjusting a and h. 

Eip-saws, and also cross-cuts for fine work, should have very little 
set, and the points only of the teeth should be bent. 

After setting the teeth, they should be finally trued, by rubbing 
the oil-stone lightly on the sides of the points. 



SAW-FILING. 



85 




86 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 9.— Construction of a Half-Joint. 

Material. — Stick of sawed pine, 3" square and 4" long. 
Work. — To lay out and make a half-joint. 

Plane the stick to exactly 2f " square, and mark the face-edge. 
Saw into two equal lengths after marking with the try-square and 
knife. When near the finish of the saw-cut, support the ends to 
prevent the stick from breaking, as shown at a, Fig. 1. 

Set the marking-gauge to If" ; mark on the ends just cut and 
along the sides 2f ", keeping the head of the gauge always on the 
face of the piece. These gauge-marks may be made without turn- 
ing the pieces over, but allowing them to remain on the bench, 
face up, as shown in a, a, Fig. 2. 

Now mark with the try-square and knife 2f " from the end, 
above the gauge-mark on one piece, and below the gauge-mark on 
the other, as at S, J, Fig. 2, always adjusting the handle of the try- 
square to the face of the stick. 

The parts to be removed, shaded a, a, in Fig. 3, are now sawed 
out, using the rip-saw first and the cross-cut to finish. These 
parts, which are waste pieces, must contain the saw-kerfs, as shown 
in Fig. 3. 

If the gauge and try-square have been properly adjusted to the 
face of the pieces, and the saw-kerfs accurately kept in the waste 
wood, the sticks will fit together, as shown in Fig. 4, so as to make 
the face even, or flush. 

If the saws have not cut accurately, trim down carefully to the 
gauge and square- marks with the chisel. 

Fig. 5 shows the pieces placed at right angles, in which posi- 
tion they should fit as well as in Fig. 4. 

The same method of marking and cutting is employed to make 
the scarf -joints, of which Figs. 6, 7, and 8 are examples. In the 
joint (Fig. 8) the pieces are forced together by the key a, which is 
slightly wedge-shaped. 

The joints (Figs. 9 and 10) used in building trusses may be 
made entirely with the saws, or with the saws and chisel. In 
practice, one piece of such joints is marked and cut first, laid 
in proper position on the other, which is then marked from the 
first. 



HALF-JOINT. 



87 




88 SIMPLE JOINTS. 



Exercise lO.— Modified Forms of the Half-Joint. 

Fig. 1 shows the pieces in position and marked for a lap-joint, 
commonly used in building frame houses ; Fig. 2, the upper piece 
cut to receive the vertical one. In nailing the pieces together, the 
vertical one is forced up against the shoulder, a, of the horizontal. 
This shoulder adds to the firmness of the joint, and the rabbet 
gives more secure nailing. The rabbet for timbers should have 
about the proportions shown in the figures. 

Fig. 3 shows the ordinary rabbeted-joint of boards to be united 
by nailing. In laying out the rabbet, the mark a, Fig. 4, must be 
made with try-square and knife, the mark h with the marking- 
gauge ; saw on the mark a with the cross-cat, and then chisel 
down the rabbet to the mark h. The horizontal piece may project 
slightly over the vertical, if it is intended to be finished with a 
plane. 

Fig. 5 shows a grooved joint ; the groove is marked with try- 
square and knife, the depth at the ends gauged. It is cut out 
with saw and chisel. This joint is used where there is apt to be a 
displacement sidewise, and also to make water-tight structures. 
In the latter case the groove is made a little narrower than the 
thickness of the tongue, which is slightly chamfered. The groove 
and tongue are then coated with white-lead and forced together. 

Fig. 6 is a modified form of the grooved joint. Where there is 
not enough wood beyond the groove to give sufficient strength, 
the groove may be made smaller, usually half size. It is cut the 
same as that of Fig. 5, or with a rabbet-plane. 

The difficulty of giving a good appearance to joints like Fig. 3 
leads to various devices for finishing, the commonest of which is 
the bead. This is worked on the edge by a plane, the shape of 
which for cutting a I" bead is shown in Fig. 8 ; the iron cuts only 
the depth «, and the round h ; the portion c of the sole acts as a 
stop to regulate the depth, and (7 as a guide against the edge of the 
board. The form cut is shown at a, Fig. 9, and is called a single 
bead ; by reversing the plane and cutting on the other side, a 
double bead is formed, as at J, Fig. 9. 

Fig. 7 shows applications of the bead. Although either piece 
may be beaded, it is customary to bead the tongued edge of a board. 



HALF-JOINT. 



89 




90 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 1 1 .—Construction of a Mortise-Joint. 

Materials.— ThQ sticks of Exercise 9, after cutting off the half- 
joint. 
Work. — To unite the pieces with a through mortise-joint. 

Hold the pieces in the position shown in Fig. 1, with the faces 
toward you. The upper is to have a tenon formed on its end, and 
the lower a mortise cut into it. 

Adjust the upper piece 2" from the end of the lower; mark 
with a sharp pencil the width of the upper piece on the face-edge 
of the lower (a, a, Fig. 1). With these points as guides, mark with 
the try-square and pencil on three sides of the mortise-piece, as 
shown at «, a. Fig. 2 ; and with the try-square and knife, mark all 
around the tenon-piece 3|^" from its end, as at h, h. 

Set the gauge at |", and mark on the end and sides of the 
tenon-piece, and on the top and bottom of the mortise-piece, as at 
«, a, Fig. 3. Then set the gauge at If" and mark between the same 
limits as before, producing the lines h, Z>, Fig. 4. Now place the 
tenon-piece on the mortise-piece, and note that the marks corre- 
spond exactly. 

Saw the tenon, observing the instructions in Exercise 9, in re- 
gard to the saw-kerf and waste wood. In order to enter the mor- 
tise, the tenon («, Fig. 5) must have its edges removed by chamfer- 
ing, as at h ; the measures, shown at c. Fig. 5, are marked with the 
pencil and rule, and the chamfer cut with the chisel. 

To cut out the mortise, bore with the brace and y center-bit 
two holes in the mortise-piece, as at a, a, Fig. 6, about one half 
way through ; then turn the piece over and bore down to meet 
the first holes. With the chisel and mallet, remove the part h be- 
tween the holes, cutting first one side then the other with the edge 
of the chisel, parallel to the grain, c, and with the bevel side down, 
so as to throw out the chips. Next turn the chisel, and cut down 
the ends of the mortise as at d, leaving a margin of wood for 
finishing. 

The mortise is now fitted for the tenon by cutting away the 
margin (a, a, Fig. 7) and paring the sides until the tenon passes 
snugly through. Test the sides of the mortise for flatness with the 
blade of the try-square. 



MORTISE-JOINT. 



91 



£x. II. 



Fig. 1 



^ 



"S" 



^ 



a (I 

U-2-" 



Fig. 2 




_£. 



"5" 



V > \ 



Fig. 3 



\ \ 



Fig. 4 



-b\ 



^ 



Fig. 5 




i f 



050 



Fig. 6 




a at 



Fig. 7 



92 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 12.— Pinning the Morttse-Joint. 

Material. — Tlie joint of Exercise 11, and a piece of hard wood, J" 

square and about 5" long. 
Work. — To fasten the tenon in the mortise with a pin. 

Bore with a f " auger-bit, through the face of the piece and 
mortise, 1" below the face-edge, as shown in Fig. 1. The line a is 
marked by pencil and rule, and the point h marked in the middle 
of this line for starting the point of the bit. The hole is not bored 
all the way, but when the point shows through, as at a. Fig. 2, turn 
the piece around and bore from that side to complete the hole. By 
this means a clean cut is made on both sides of the piece. Test 
the auger-bit with the try-square, to keep it straight until fairly 
started into the wood. 

Place the tenon in the mortise and mark the center of the hole 
on it with the point of the bit. Eemove the tenon, and start the 
bit about ^^" nearer the shoulder. The hole thus bored (Fig. 3) is 
not in a line with that of the mortise, as shown at a, Fig. 4, but 
when the pin is forced through, the pieces are brought closer 
together, forming a stiffer and stronger joint. 

The pin is planed to f " square, chamfered with plane or chisel 
to an octagonal shape, rounded and pointed with the chisel, as 
shown in Fig. 5, which is just one half size. In practice, the pin 
is driven in flush with the face of the mortise-piece, the protruding 
portion being either allowed to remain, or sawed off close. 

For large through mortise-joints, such as are seen in the heavy 
frames of barns and mills, two oak pins are used, as at a. Fig. 6. 
Sometimes the pins are intended to act like wedges and force the 
parts together, as shown at h, Fig. 6. This joint is common in 
machine-frames. 

Formerly, when pins were used to a greater extent, they were 
compressed by being forced through a tapering hole in an iron 
block. This had the effect of binding the pin firmly in the 
joint. 

Fig. 7 is an example of a double mortise, and is used for secur- 
ing the central leg of a table to the top. It is sometimes made 
without the shoulders a, a, which is bad practice, because they give 
greater stability to the joint. 



PINNING A MORTISE. 



93 



Ex. 12. 



\ \ \ 


\ K \ 


\ \ \ 


1 \ \ 

L_OL_.X-i-J 
1 ^ i 



k 



Fig. 1 



Fig. 3 



H 






D 



Fig. 2 



Fig. 4 



1 


1 


'/ 




n 


H 

■ 


:^ ^ m 



O 




Fig. 5 




Ts. 



3i^ 



yr 



i 



i^ig. 6 



\ 



Fig. 7 



\^ i 



94 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 1 3.— Construction of a Stub-Mortise. 

Material.— The same pieces as before, after removing the pinned 

joint. 
Work. — To lay out, cut, and fasten a stub-mortise joint. 

Use the same methods and measurements in marking as in 
Exercise 11, except that the tenon is to be f" long, and the mortise 
1" deep, and 1" from the end of the piece. Fig. 1 represents the 
work laid out, the lines «, a, marked with try- square and knife, 
and the lines &, J, with the marking-gauge. After cutting the 
tenon, a very small chamfer, about ^", may be cut on its end with- 
out marking. 

The holes bored by the center-bit should not be more than 1" 
deep. When a large number of holes are to be bored the same 
depth, a wooden stop is made by boring a hole through a block of 
wood, so that the stem of the bit will pass through it, but of 
proper thickness to prevent the tool cutting beyond the required 
amount. 

In removing chips from the mortise, do not pry with the chisel 
on the sides and ends. In testing the mortise, hold the chisel 
against the side, and note whether it is square or inclined. The 
mortise and tenon should fit very snugly. 

With the tenon in place, bore with a \" auger-bit a hole through 
the bottom of the mortise-piece, and into the middle of the tenon- 
piece about 3", as shown in Fig. 3. This is to receive an iron bolt. 
At I'y from the shoulder, and on the inside of the tenon-piece 
(rt, Fig. 3), cut with chisels a hole large enough to receive the nut 
{h, Fig. 3) of the bolt. The head, d, of the bolt should have a 
washer, c, to prevent it crushing the wood. In some cases it is 
necessary to sink the head flush with the surface, as at a, Fig. 4. 

The stub-mortise is extensively used in heavy machine-frames. 

Fig. 5 shows a blind-mortise, used in making furniture. Some- 
times the end of the tenon is spread with wedges, as at a, J, Fig. 6. 

Fig. 7 shows a form of stub-mortise used in heavy railroad- 
trestles. The timbers are secured by. iron straps spiked to the 
sides. 

Fig. 8 is a form of joint used in trusses, the broken line a 
showing the shape of the tenon. 



STUB-MORTISE. 



95 




96 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 1 4.— Construction of a Dovetail-Joint. 

Material. — Same pieces as before, with stub-mortise sawed off. 
Work. — To lay out and construct an end-dovetail- joint. 

Wherever oblique cuts are to be made, great care is necessary in 
marking. 

Place the pieces in the position shown in Fig. 1 ; the upper 
piece is to have the tenon, or dovetail, the lower the mortise. With 
try-square and sharp pencil, mark lines around three sides of each 
piece, at a distance from the end equal to the width of the opposite 
piece, as shown at a, a. Fig. 1. These pencil-marks should be 
very light, so as to be easily cleaned off with sand-paper or smooth- 
ing-plane. 

The measurements of the dovetail are given in Fig. 3. Set the 
gauge at f", and mark the lines h, h, Fig. 1. Set it at 2f ", and 
mark the lines V, V. Set it at I", and mark the line c, and press 
the point only of the gauge at rf, d. Set the gauge at If", and 
mark the line c', and the points e, e. Bring the edge of the blade 
of the try-square to coincide with the lines h and c on the end of 
the mortise-piece, and mark with the knife a line joining them. 
Do the same for all the oblique lines, as shown in Fig. 1. 

The tenon («, Fig. 2) is sawed out, and the sides of the mortise 
h also cut with the saw. The mortise is finished with the chisel, 
used as shown in Fig. 4. A vertical cut is made as at a, using the 
mallet, then one at I ; these to be repeated until one half through 
the piece, then cut on the opposite side. Avoid cutting into the 
sides of the mortise by inclining the chisel. The same caution 
must be observed in keeping some of the wood at c, Fig. 4, until the 
last, when it is carefully cut away, and the surface tested with the 
try-square. The sides of the mortise usually need a little paring 
before the tenon will fit. This done, the pieces should go together 
easily, but without play or open joints, and appear as in Fig. 5. 

Fig. 6 shows an oblique dovetail-joint used in a gallows-brace, 
which is made of lighter material than the rest of the frame, let in 
about one half its thickness and pinned as shown in the figure. In 
practice the oblique marks on the brace are obtained directly from 
the beams, the dovetails are then cut, and the mortises marked on 
the beams from them. 



DOVETAIL-JOINT. 



97 



Ex. 14. 





Fig. 1 



^ 


f^ 


\ 


c\ 




\c' 




a\ 




h b 









Fig. 2 




f\ 





98 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 1 5.— Construction of a Miter-Joint. 

Material. — A strip of pine, 2\" wide, i" thick, and about 16" long. 
Work. — To make a miter- joint. 

Mark with the try-square and knife two lines across the middle 
of the strip from a and e, Fig. 1, about ^" apart. Measure care- 
fully the length a i, and lay it off on the face-edge, to obtain a c, 
then mark with the knife and blade of the try-square, c h. Do the 
same on the opposite side for the mark / d. From c and d mark 
lines on the y side square with the face-edge. 

Saw very accurately against the lines c b and d f, the waste 
wood being toward a in each case. The pieces put together as in 
Fig. 2, and the try-square, indicated at a, applied to them, should 
show a true miter-joint. 

The joint may not be true, and, to determine whicli side is at 
fault, adjust the T-bevel to exactly 45°, the value of a true miter. 
To do this, repeat the operation shown in Fig. 1, but more care- 
fully. With a sharp pencil mark on a board with a straight-edge 
the line a c, Fig, 3, against the try-square ; turn the square over, 
and test the line by marking another on it ; if these separate, make 
a line exactly between the two — this should be correct ; then meas- 
ure off accurate equal lengths a c and a i ; join the points c and 
h ; adjust the T-bevel to this last line, as in the figure, and test the 
pieces with it. 

Two faults are shown in Figs. 4 and 5, and the broken lines 
indicate the wood to be removed in order to correct them, which 
may be done with the chisel, saw, or plane. 

To correct with the saw, fasten the true side with the hand- 
screw, as shown at a. Fig. 6, square to the stop of the bench-hook, 
press the piece J against the stop and the piece a ; saw between the 
pieces, so as to cut on J, while a guides the saw. 

To correct with the plane the piece is held as shown in Fig. 7, 
the iron cutting that part which is to be removed. This maintains 
a square end as well as correcting the bevel. 

If a thick piece, fasten in the vise, and with a sharp fine-set 
smoothing-plane, make very short strokes, as indicated by the ar- 
rows at a, i, and c, Fig. 8, cutting only those places where wood 
should be removed. 



MITER-JOINT. 



99 




100 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 1 6.— Use of the Miter-Box. 

Material.— K piece of molding, 18" long and 2" wide. 
W&rk. — To saw the molding in the miter-box and test the result by 
uniting the pieces. 

The successive cuts of the molding are shown in Fig. 4, start- 
ing from the right-hand end. Adjust each cut carefully, so that 
no portion of the edges remains between the cuts. In pushing 
the saw, which in ordinary practice is a back-saw or small thin 
cross-cut, guide it so as not to injure the saw-kerfs of the miter- 
box, and use very little force. The molding cut as directed gives 
two sets of four pieces. Each set may be fastened to a thin board 
4" square, with .small finishing nails, as in Fig. 5. 

In molding a frame or panel, the lengths are accurately meas- 
ured, usually by laying the molding on the side of the frame, and 
marking on its edge with a knife. The inside measurement of the 
frame {a b, Fig. 6) gives marks as at b and d, Fig. 3, which are ad- 
justed to the saw-kerfs on the side d. Fig. 1, of the miter-box. The 
outside measurement (c d, Fig. 6) gives marks as at a and c, Fig. 3, 
and these are adjusted to the kerfs on the bottom piece of the box, 
as at /, Fig. 1. But in the lower moldings, shown in Fig. 6,- the 
marks are made in the rabbets, and a little care must be taken to 
adjust them to the kerfs on the bottom of the miter-box. 

Very large moldings are built up of several elements fastened 
to frames, as in Fig. 7. Fig. 8 shows a joint commonly used in 
trimming windows and doors, in which only the molded part is 
mitered. This miter is cut with the chisel alone, or with the aid 
of a guide, as shown at a, Fig. 9. 

A miter-box for ordinary work should be about 18" long, and 
made of hard wood, 4" wide and 1^" thick. The middle or bot- 
tom piece («, Fig. 1) must be planed perfectly flat and with par- 
allel and square edges; the sides (b, c. Fig. 1) firmly fastened 
with screws. The holes for these screws should be bored as shown 
in Fig. 2 ; the first boring, b, should admit the smooth shaft of 
the screw a ; the second boring, c, should be smaller and the full 
length of the screw ; the top of the hole, d, is countersunk for the 
head of the screw. The saw-cuts are laid out from the face-edge 
{d, Fig. 1), and made with the saw which is to be used in the box. 



MITER-BOX. 



101 



Ex. 1 6. 



Mi 




a h c d 

V 



n 



Fig. 1 



Fig. 2 



'^^ 


7- 


\ 




h. 


/ 


\ 




~\ 


/ \ 




(^ 


/ V 





Fig. 4 




Fig. 5 



m^. . i 1 






Fig. 7 \\ 

1 


- 











) 


7 




Fi 


g.8 







Fig. 3 



c c 



^^ 



E 



Fig. 6 




Fig. 9 



102 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 1 7.— Construction of a Stretcher-Joint. 

Material. — Pine, 2" wide, i" thick, and 13" long-. 
Work. — To make a joint such as that used in frames for stretching- 
canvas. 

This Joint is a combination of miter and half joint, and is laid 
out as shown in Fig. 1. The miter is on the face-side, and ^" 
thick, the tenon also \" thick. For the miter the gauge is set at 
^", but for the tenon at \". To avoid mistakes, the parts to be cut 
out should be shaded as in Fig. 2. Saw the tenon and mortise 
with a back-saw before sawing the miter. 

With an ^" chisel, or better, an ^" float (Fig. 5, Plate B), cut the 
grooves for wedges as shown in Fig. 4. The groove for the hori- 
zontal one is made in the tenon-piece, close up to the tenon, and, 
for the vertical one, in the mortise. Make the wedges of hard 
wood, with the grain parallel to one side, which must be in contact 
with the end wood of the pieces as they are driven in. 

The pine piece for this exercise may be sawed out of a |-" board. 
This board should rest on carpenter's horses ; the rip-saw is used 
first, the kerf is made on the pencil-mark, is brought Just up to the 
cross-mark, and finished with a vertical stroke. In marking, an 
allowance of about ^" should be made for planing and finishing. 

Fig. 5 shows a form of stretcher-joint sometimes seen in pict- 
ure-frames. This joint will stretch the canvas fairly well, but has 
not the control over wrinkles as that of Fig. 4 has. 

Fig. 6 shows a form of miter-joint in which oblique saw-kerfs 
are made for the insertion of thin pieces of hard wood. The joint 
has somewhat the character of a dovetail, and should be well 
glued. 

A miter-Joint in thin pieces is usually secured by a veneer, 
glued in as in Fig. 7. The pieces are first mitered, then fastened 
in the Jaws of a hand-screw or bench-vise, and the saw-cut made 
for the insertion of the veneer. 

Picture-frames are generally made by mitering, gluing, and fast- 
ening with small finishing-nails at the outer corners. Occasionally 
we see frames with joints like those of Fig. 3, and sometimes with 
two tenons and mortises instead of one. Since glue holds better 
on side- wood than on end- wood, the latter are much stronger. 



STRETCHER-JOINT. 



103 



Ex. 17, 





Fig. 1 



Fig. 2 



Fig. 3 



Fig. 4 




V 




Fig. 5 




Fig. 7 



Fig. 6 



104 SIMPLE JOINTS. 



Exercise 18.— Uniting with Dowels. 

Material. — Two blocks of wood, about 3" wide, 2" thick, and 4" to 5" 

long. 
Work. — To mark for the positions of the dowels, and join the pieces. 

Plane the surfaces of the blocks until perfectly flat, test them 
by bringing the surfaces in contact, and note whether they touch 
all around. The dowel-joint is a weak one, and, unless the surfaces 
are flat and brought in close contact, the dowels will be of no serv- 
ice in holding the pieces together. 

Select positions for the dowels on the pieces to be united, so that 
other joints or cuts will not interfere with them. Fix a point (a. 
Fig. 1) on each piece, at corresponding distances from the edges, 
for one dowel. With this first point for a center, mark the arcs 
5, h with the compasses, and mark on them corresponding points 
for the second dowel. From the points a, a describe the arcs c, c ; 
and from b, b the arcs d, d, crossing c, c to give the places for the 
third dowels. With a f" auger or dowel-bit bore a hole about 1" 
deep at each point. Saw three dowels from a dowel-rod, about 3" 
long, and slightly chamfer their ends with the chisel or rasp. Drive 
them into one piece. Measure the depths of the holes in the other 
piece, see that the dowels are not too long, and then force the pieces 
together. 

An ordinary way of getting the marks for the dowels is to place 
small shot in position on one piece and press the other piece on 
them. 

Fig. 2 shows a method of marking with try-square and gauge 
for dowels ; Fig, 3, the dowels in position and the pieces ready for 
gluing. 

When dowel-rods can not be obtained, the dowels may be made 
with a dowel-plate. Fig. 4, a, is a dowel-plate, of iron or steel, and 
having a number of holes of different sizes in it, through which 
rough pieces of wood, J, are forced with the hammer. 

Fig. 5 shows the diagonal positions of dowels in uniting thick 
pieces. Fig. 6 illustrates the use of dowels in holding the parts of a 
core-box in position. Fig. 7 illustrates the use of dowels in uniting 
the parts of a hand-rail ; « is a square nut, b a nut (shown enlarged 
at c) with projections, so that it may be turned with a punch. 



DOWEL-JOINT. 



105 



Ex. i8. 



xa 



Fig. 1 



^^ 



€?> 



1^ 



Fig.J^ 



Th. 



P 



J'isr. 5 




^- ^^ 



~^ 



'^L 



Fig. 2 



o \o 



Fig. 3 





Fig. 6 





Fig. 7 



106 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 1 9.— Gluing. 

Material. — Two blocks of wood. 

Glue prepared for use. 
Worh. — To face the blocks and unite them with glue. 

To prepare glue : Fill the inner vessel of the glue-pot about one 
third full of dried glue ; cover with cold water and set aside for 
several hours ; after which keep the outer vessel about one half full 
of water, and boil with the inner vessel in place. Add enough hot 
water to the melted glue until the drip from the brush begins to 
form drops. 

Plane the surfaces of the blocks perfectly flat. Test them by 
holding together as in Fig. 1, and note if the surfaces come together 
at the edges, and particularly at opposite corners, as a and c. Mark 
the edges of the block, so that you will know which way they go 
together. The surfaces may be roughened with the scratch-plane, 
and must not be oily. Adjust tlie hand-screws a little wider apart 
than the thickness of the united blocks. 

Heat the blocks and apply the hot glue to both surfaces, then 
rub them together, forcing out the excess of glue. Rest the lower 
jaw of the hand-screw on the bench, and place the blocks well into 
the screws, as shown in Fig. 2 ; tighten the screw a until a slight 
pressure is exerted on c, c, Fig. 2 ; then turn the screw h until the 
jaws close down at (?, (^, Fig. 3. Examine carefully to see that the 
joint is evenly closed, adjusting the pieces with the hammer, if not 
in place. Eemove the excess of glue with a wet sponge, or with 
the chisel when partially set, after which stand the pieces aside for 
several hours. 

In gluing together the edges of boards, or the parts of a door, 
clamps must be used, as shown in Fig. 4. 

Fig. 5 represents a block built up by uniting several pieces ; the 
pieces I, h may be doweled as well as glued, the pieces a, a simply 
glued. Where glue alone is used, some attention should be paid 
to the direction and character of the grain. If possible, the grain 
should be parallel and alike in size. A coarse grain, a, will not 
unite well with a fine grain, h^ Fig. 6, especially if the pieces are 
not perfectly seasoned. Fig. 7 illustrates a way in which large 
pieces are built up in pattern- work. 



GLUING. 



107 




108 SIMPLE JOINTS. 

Exercise 20.— Examples of Glued Joints. 

Fig. 1 shows the usual way in which furniture is joined — that 
is, with dowels and glue. While there are many joints in furni- 
ture and cabinet-work for which the dowel is especially suited, 
there are also many joints in which it is constantly used, but not 
at all suited, and where a well-made mortised joint would be much 
stronger. 

Fig. 2 shows a blind-mortise- joint used in well-made cabi- 
net work. The tenon of such a joint should have shoulders 
on at least three sides. Glue the mortise and tenon, and not the 
shoulder. 

Fig. 3 shows the manner of stiffening a joint, by means of 
angle-pieces («, a). These are carefully fitted, glued, and rubbed 
until the glue sets. 

As another example of angle-pieces we have that shown in 
Fig. 4, in Avhich the pieces a, «, a, stiffen the joint by acting like 
braces between the boards. This j)ractice is very extensive in the 
manufacture of furniture, and is also used between the tread and 
riser of a stair. Where greater strength is required, and the ex- 
posed surfaces of the work are to be kept as free as possible from 
marks, as in fastening a table-top to its frame, the pieces may be 
screwed together as shown in Fig. 5. The recesses are first cut 
with a gouge or one of the recent forms of bits shown in Fig. 6 ; 
then the holes are made for the screws, which are usually short 
and thick. This new form of bit is guided by a sharp rim, a, 
which prepares the way for the cutter, J, and may be started against 
the side of a board for an oblique cut, as in Fig. 5, as well as a 
straight boring. 

It frequently happens that where boards have to be securely 
united, screws must be used through a surface which is afterward 
to be finished. Fig. 7 shows the boards prepared for the screws ; 
the space a is cut very neatly, and afterward filled with a round 
piece of wood corresponding in color and direction of grain. Fig. 
8 shows the pieces screwed together, and the round block, J, glued 
in place, after which the surface is planed. The round piece may 
be pared with the chisel, or turned in a lathe. 



GLUING. 



109 



Ex. 20. 



Fig. 1 




Fig. 2 






Fig. S 




a a 



S^ 



Fig. 4 




Fig. 5 






Fig. 7 



^^.-y 



^mmm 



Fig. 8 



g 







Fig. 6 



110 COMPOUND JOINTS. 



Exercise 2 1 .—Laying out a Dovetailed Box. 

Material. — Dressed pine-board, 14" wide and |" thick. 
WorJc.—l. Saw oflp 17" of the board. 

2. Lay out the parts of the box on the board. 

3. Saw and plane the pieces to proper size. 

The dimensions of the box are : length 8", height 4|-", width 5", 
thickness of material f ", depth of inside 3^", as in Fig. 1. 

It will take 17" in length of a board 14" wide to furnish enough 
material. Saw this from the board, resting on horses, after mark- 
ing with the large pencil and steel square, and allowing for wind- 
checks, if at the end. 

The 17" piece must now be carefully examined on both sides 
for checks, shakes, knots, sap-wood, resin-pockets, and other im- 
perfections, and the box laid out so that these faults may come in 
the waste wood. If the wood is clear, the pieces may be laid out 
as shown in Fig. 2 : a, the top ; h, bottom ; c, c, front and back ; 
d, d., ends ; e, e, waste wood to make up for any defects that may 
occur. Notice that all the pieces are laid out larger than the true 
size. Thus the top and bottom are 8|^" by 5|^", the front and back 
8|-" by 3^", and the ends 5|-" by 3^". This is allowed for working 
margins. 

If a 9" board is used, the pieces may be obtained with less 
waste, as shown in Fig. 3. It would take 32 1^" length to provide 
the material. 

In sawing out the pieces where they are short, as in this case, 
those of the same kind should be kept together until after planing ; 
a with J, c with c, and d with c?, Fig. 2. The pieces are first 
squared on one edge, which becomes the face- edge ; from this the 
opposite edge is gauged and planed. 

The top and bottom may be put aside without planing until 
the other pieces are glued together. 

Plane to "6^' wide, carefully measure and mark with the knife 
the length, 8", of the front and back pieces, and saw accurately 
with the back-saw. 

It is sometimes the practice, after sawing the pieces apart, to 
adjust the cut ends and face-edges together, and make one knife- 
mark across the edges, thus securing equal lengths. 



DOVETAILED BOX. 



Ill 




112 COMPOUND JOINTS. 



Exercise 22.— Laying out and cutting the Dovetails. 

Material. — Front and back pieces of the dovetailed box. 
Work. — Marking and cutting the mortises. 

The pieces are marked with a sharp pencil on both sides and 
edge f" from the ends, as at a, a, Z», J, Fig. 1. Or the pieces are 
brought together and points marked on both at the face- edge, by 
which the lines a, J, Fig. 1, are squared. It is very necessary to 
square the lines from the face-edge, otherwise the joints are likely 
to be open on one side or the other. 

On these lines mark the places for the dovetails as indicated in 
Fig. 2. This may be done in either of two ways : the measure may 
be carefully made on a cardboard and transferred from it to each 
of the lines with a sharp point ; or the marking-gauge may be set 
at each measure and its point used to mark the distance on the 
lines. 

In Fig. 2, one end is shown full size with the measures ; on the 
line from atoh each space has its value ; while from do d each 
point is measured from the face-edge, and any inaccuracy given 
to one of the points is not continued along the line. This latter 
method is truer, but more difficult. Having marked the points, 
the slanting sides of the joints are marked with the knife along 
the T-bevel set to a certain angle. This angle, an arbitrary one, 
is shown in Fig. 3. On a board with a true edge measure f ", h, c\ 
from h draw the line a h with try-square ; lay oif on this line a 
point 3" from h\ join this last point and c; adjust the T-bevel to 
this line, a c. The bevel is applied to the ends of the pieces in 
marking the lines ^, y, and i, i, and the marks across the ends 
7i, ?i, completed with the try-square and knife. 

In cutting out the mortises, it would be well to shade the parts 
to be removed, then saw, observing the rule in regard to the saw- 
kerf, as in Fig. 4. The pieces are cut out as directed in Exercise 
14. In finishing the cuts, use a small chisel grasped by the right 
hand resting on the piece (Fig. 5), so that the hand acts both as a 
power and a guide or check to prevent the tool cutting beyond 
half the depth. The cut should be as near as possible straight 
across, but rather hollow than round, as at c?, Fig. 6. In testing 
use a small steel square (Fig. 8, Plate A). 



BO VET AIL ED BOX— MO R TI8E8. 



113 



Ex. 22. 







16 b 





Fig. 1 




■ 3^^M— 2?/-- 1^ V/n- k \\ Vi-^-.\% V32--K~»/lf -^- ^8- 

! ! I TV 



ft c 



i^igr. 3 





Fig. 6 



Fig. 




Fig. 4 




Fig. 5 



114 COMPOUND JOINTS. 



Exercise 23.— Marking and cutting the Tenons. 

Material. — The end pieces of the dovetailed box. 
Work. — 1. Marking and cutting the tenons. 
2. Gluing together the sides. 

Mark with a sharp pencil f " from the ends all around the end 
pieces. Stand the front, back, and end pieces on the bench in the 
positions whicli they will have when the box is completed. Mark 
the outer and upper corners of adjoining parts with the same sign 
or number. 

Fasten the end piece numbered 1 in the vise, with its number 
up and out ; place the front piece on the end piece as shown in 
Fig. 1, resting the back part on a plane-stock or block of wood. 
Adjust the two pieces with the try-square, its handle against the 
face-edge of the front piece, and its blade up against the end 
piece. Hold the upper piece in this adjusted position, while with 
a knife or point you mark along the sides of the mortise on the 
top of the end piece. The marks should appear like those of a, 
Fig. 2. Mark the other ends in the same way. With try-square 
and knife mark from the ends of the lines a. Fig. 2, down to the 
pencil-mark, as at h and c. 

Saw with the back-saw as shown in Fig. 3, keeping the kerf in 
the waste wood. 

Saw the corner waste pieces, and chisel out the middle ones, 
making the surfaces «, «, Fig. 4, as flat as possible. Carefully 
fit the corresponding parts, using the chisel for paring where 
neccessary. 

With a sharp finely set smoothing-plane clean off the inside 
surfaces of the pieces. Open two hand-screws ready for use in the 
positions shown in Fig. 5. 

The pieces are now warmed, the tenons and mortices glued, the 
parts pressed together and placed in the hand-screws, which are 
tightened sufficiently to close the joints but not bend in the sides. 
The gluing process should be performed quickly, and the student 
should have a fellow-student assist him. 

Clean off as much excess glue as possible, wiping the inside 
with a wet sponge or cloth, and set aside the box for several 
hours. 



DOVETAILED BOX— TENONS. 



115 




116 COMPOUND JOINTS. 



Exercise 24.— Finishing the Box. 

Work. — 1. Examine and prepare the smoothing-plane for finishing. 

2. Smooth and plane flat the bottom edge of the sides, and glue on 

the bottom piece. 

3. Smooth the joints and sides. 

Kemove and sliarpen the iron of the smoothing-plane. Ex- 
amine the sole of the plane with the try-square for flatness. The 
fault in wooden planes, particularly if new, is shown in Fig. 1 ; 
holding the blade on the sole, you will notice that the wood Just 
behind the throat is too high, as at b. This is caused by unequal 
shrinkage of the wood when the iron and wedge are in place, and 
must be remedied by planing down the sole with a true, sharp, fine- 
set fore-plane or smoothing-plane. Unless the sole of the plane 
is perfectly flat, no good work can be performed with it. 

Fig. 2 represents a block-plane, made of iron, with levers for 
adjusting its iron, and a movable toe-piece to regulate the opening 
of the throat. The iron, c, has its bevel side up, and is inclined 
about 20°. There is more friction with an iron plane, but it gives 
better results across the grain or on hard wood. 

Fasten the box in the vise with the bottom upward ; hold the 
plane in the position shown in a, Fig. 3 ; push it slowly along the 
side, to cut rather on the inside than outside of the pieces; turn 
the corners as shown by the arrow at e, Fig. 3. The tendency is 
to cut too much on the outer edge and on the corners, which must 
be carefully avoided. In all finishing the shavings must be very 
thin. After planing and testing the bottom for flatness, smooth the 
face of the bottom piece, glue it to the box, clean off the excess 
glue, and set aside for the glue to harden ; after which, fasten the 
box in the vise with an end upward, and clean off the wood. Here 
the greatest care must be taken to prevent splitting off pieces in 
the manner shown in Fig. 4. In Fig. 5 the broken line shows the 
direction which the cutting edge should take, always raising the 
plane when nearly across. Plane from the edges toward the mid- 
dle, and, if the middle becomes high, confine the strokes to the 
high part. 

In framed work, as in Fig. 6, plane a and b first, then c and d, 
noting the direction of the grain, so as to secure a smooth surface. 



DOVETAILED BOX— FINISHING. 



117 




118 COMPOUND JOINTS. 

Exercise 25.— Hinging the Top to tlie Box. 

Material. — 1" middle-size, wrought-brass butts, f" brass screws to fit. 
Work. — 1. Prepare the upper edge of the box for the top. 

2. Smooth the top piece and square its back edge. 

3. Fit and fasten the hinges. 

4. Finish the edges of the top piece. 

The hinges may have either of the three f)ositions shown in 
Figs. 1, 2, and 3. For that of Fig. 3, narrow-size butts should be 
used, and the edges of the back piece and top chamfered, as at 
a and h. 

Hold the hinge on the back piece f " from the corner, and mark 
with the knife (a, a. Fig. 4). Repeat for the other hinge at the 
other end. Set the gauge, using the hinge for the distance (c. Fig. 
1), and mark the lines (J, Fig. 4). Set the gauge, exactly one half 
the thickness of the hinge {d. Fig. 1), and mark the lines (c. Fig. 
4). Hold the hinge so that it coincides with the marks a, «, and 
^, Fig. 4, and extend the lines a, a, up to h with the knife. 

Cut down on the line d^ Fig. 5, with the knife about the depth 
required ; with the chisel cut out the corners, as shown at a, a. 
Fig. 5 ; and with the chisel in the position c. Fig. 5, make several 
cuts to finish the recess for the hinge. Place the hinge in the re- 
cess ; with a brad-awl make holes smaller and not as deep as the 
length of the screw, and fasten the hinge with the screws. Repeat 
the cutting and fasten the other hinge. Close the butts, and place 
the top in position, resting on them ; mark with the knife points 
on the top to correspond with the marks a, a. Fig. 4. From these 
marks as guides repeat the marking and cutting as for the back 
piece. 

Screw the butts to the top, using one screw for each ; then test 
the top by closing it, and remedy any defect by cutting or placing 
strips of cardboard under the butts, if cut away too much. Then 
put in the other screws. Finish the edges of the top piece, using 
the box as a guide. Smooth the face of the top. 

The top may be secured with a brass hook and eye. Screw the 
eye in the middle of the front edge of the top ; place the hook in 
the eye to determine the place for the screw. 

Fig. 6 shows a table-hinge, and Fig. 7 a door-hinge. 



DOVETAILED BOX— HINGING TOP. 



119 




Fig. 1 



Fig. 2 





1 Fig.S m 



m 






Fig. 4 




f/y- 




w T 

Fig. 7 



120 COMPOUND JOINTS. 



Exercise 26.— Construction of a Drawer. 

Material.— OnQ piece of ash, to work 4" wide, I" thick, and 9i" long. 

Two pieces of maple, to work 4" wide, %'' thick, and 14|" long. 

One piece of maple, to work 3f " wide, I" thick, and 8|^" long. 

One piece of whitewood, to work 14" wide, ^" thick, and 8|" long. 
Work.—l. Plane the pieces to the proper dimensions. 

2. Cut the dovetails on the front piece. 

3. Cut the mortises and grooves for the back piece in the sides. 

4. Plow the grooves in the front and sides for the bottom. 

5. Fit the back piece. 

6. Glue and nail the front sides and back together. 

7. Fit and place the bottom in position. 

The pieces may be cut from boards, allowance being made 
for working, so as to produce a drawer of the dimensions given in 
Fig. 1. 

In marking for the dovetails in the ash front, use the measures 
given in a. Fig. 2. In cutting out the dovetails, use the back-saw, 
as shown in Fig. 4. Chisel out the waste wood, being careful not 
to undercut the spaces, which should be frequently tested for 
squareness. 

The mortises (shown at c and d, Fig. 2) are marked from the 
tenons. The grooves for the back are sawed and chiseled out ^" 
deep, ^" wide, and about f " from the ends. 

Place the \" iron in the plow («, Fig. 3), adjust it for a fine cut; 
set the bridge h so that the iron is f " from it ; set the stop c so 
that the iron will plow to a depth of \" ; and first try the plow on 
some waste block before grooving the pieces. 

The dovetail-joints are glued. The back piece is nailed with 
1:^" finishing or wire nails, which should be driven a short way be- 
low the surface with a nail-punch. 

After the glue has hardened, the bottom is fitted and pushed in 
place. The edge of the bottom is marked with the gauge set at a 
little less than ^", and beveled with the jack-plane to about 1" back 
from the edge. 

The entire drawer is now finished with the smoothing-plaue, 
and may be furnished with handle or lock. A lock is fitted 
somewhat like a hinge, the key-hole being the guide for its 
position. 



BE A WEE. 



121 




122 COMPOUND JOINTS. 

Exercise 27.— Construction of a Blind-Dovetailed Box. 

Material. — y dressed mahogany. 

Work. — To construct a box 9" long, 6" wide, and about 4" high, with 
hidden joints. 

The box will consist of two portions, the lower or box proper, 
and a 1^" lid. To secure perfect coincidence between lid and box, 
these are built together, and, after the box has been glued up, are 
separated with the saw. An allowance from ^" to ^" must there- 
fore be made for the saw-cut and finishing. The joints between 
the sides are dovetailed with a mitered edge. The top is grooved 
and mitered to the sides, and the bottom tongued, to fit a groove 
in the sides. 

Fig. 1, a, shows the details, drawn one half size of the end 
piece, c a perspective of the same, b a perspective of the adjoining 
piece. At d, d, d, is shown the separation to form the lid. 

Fig. 2 gives the full-size details of the joint for the top and 
also for the sides of the lid. The groove and miter are worked 
with the plow and plane all around the top. 

Fig 3 gives the details, also full size, for the bottom. 

The dovetails are f " long, and the mitered edge ^". At the 
top, bottom, and adjoining the line of separation {d, Fig. 1) of the 
sides, the joints are mitered, as shown in b and c. Fig. 1. 

In working the joints, cut all the grooves and rabbets first, 
then the dovetails, and lastly the mitered surfaces. On the ends 
of the sides, saw and chisel a rabbet ^" wide and f " deep ; mark 
out the dovetails ; saw both tenons and mortises, as shown in Fig. 
4, Example 26 ; chisel out and fit the dovetails and miters. 

To make the joint between the lid and box dust-tight, strips 
■^" thick and f " wide may be glued around the inside of the box, 
projecting above its edge about yV , and with mitered joints. The 
projecting edge should be round. 

Or a tray about 1^" deep may be made of thin material, to rest 
on an inside lining about ^" thick and 1^" high. 

In Fig. 4 the mitered edge is shown rounded, as frequently seen 
in cabinet-work. Fig. 5 is a simpler joint than the above. Some- 
times the corners are left open to be afterward filled with a narrow 
strip of some fancy wood. 



BLIND-DOVETAILED BOX. 123 




124 ELEMENTS OF HOUSE-BUILDING. 

Exercise 28.— Framing. 

In the eight exercises following, the actual sizes Avill be given, 
from which the stadent will calculate the proportionate measures 
for his models. 

Fig. 1 represents a portion of the frame of a wooden house. 
The sUls, a, are 3" by 6", with half -joints at the corners, and scarf 
or lap-joints between. The sills should be 2" inside of the founda- 
tion-walls (see Fig. 1, Exercise 30). The corner-posts, Z», are 4" by 
4", and extend all the way to the roof. The roof-plates, f?, are also 
4" by 4", with half-joints at the corners, or, if the building has a 
gable-end, the joint may be like that in Fig. 2, Exercise 10. 
At c the corner-post is notched for the strip supporting the joists 
of the second story. This strip is 1" by 5". The studs, e, are 3" 
by 4", 13' long, and set 16" from centers; they are spliced as shown 
in Fig. 2, by nailing strips on the wide sides. The floor-joists,/, 
should be 3" by 10" for the principal floor, set against the studs, to 
which they are securely nailed. At g is the opening for the chim- 
ney ; this opening is formed by mortising the trimmer, i, into the 
joists, A, h, 3' from the studs ; into this trimmer are mortised the 
joists, y. The form of mortising this case is that shown in Fig. 3, 
or the stronger joint formed by an iron strap, as in Fig. 4. To 
avoid waste, the openings for the windows may be calculated from 
the size of the glass ; for a sash three lights wide and six high, each 
8" by 10", the width will be 2' 11", and the height 6'. The studs 
for such openings are framed as at I and k. If a small building, 
the roof-joists may be 3" by 6", butting against the ridge-pole, m. 
If the upper story is an attic, its ceiling wall be hung, supported, 
as at n^ by light material. The floor-joists are stiffened by bridg- 
ing, which is shown in Fig. 6. Two chalk-lines, as far apart as 
the joists are wide, are made across the tops of the joists where 
the bridging is to go, and from these lines the exact length and in- 
clination of the saw-cut are obtained. Fig. 7 shows the manner of 
fastening beams or joists to brick walls, by using an anchor. Fig. 
8 shows the manner of indicating the place for the foundation ; 
the lines are fastened to nails driven into stakes. To square the 
lines with the tape-measure, lay off 8' on one, and stick a pin 
through it at that point ; on the other lay off 0', and stick in a pin ; 
the pins should be exactly 10' apart to make the angle square. 



FRAMING. 



125 




li" 




5" 




2' 5i" 


" 


H" 




0? 




2' 51" 


u 


2" 




6i" 




3' 4" 


u 


i" 




11" 




5' 6" 


a 


i" 




If" 




2' 7" 


" 


i" 




1" 




5' 6" 




r 




1" 




2' 5f " 


(( 


li" 




4^' 




5' 7" 


i( 


li" 




4J" 




3' 2" 


" 



126 ELEMENTS OF HOUSE-BUILDING. 

Exercise 29.— Construction of Window and Door 
Frames. 

Material. — The following pieces enter into a window-frame the size 
of that mentioned in the previous Exercise : 

Two pulley-stiles^ a, Figs. 1, 2, and 3, li" thick, 5" wide, 6' 1" long. 

One head^ b, Figs. 2 and 4, 

One sill, c, Figs. 1, 2, and 4, li" 

One sub-sill, d, Figs. 1, 2, and 4, 2" 

Two casings, e, Figs. 1 and 2, 

One casing, f. Figs. 1 and 2, 

Two parting-strips, g, Figs. 1 and 2, 

One parting-strip, h, Fig. 2, 

Two hanging-stiles, i. Fig. 1, 

One top, j. Fig. 1, 

The pulley-stiles are grooved 1^" from the face-edge to receive 
the parting-strips, and at the top and bottom for the head and sills. 
The pulleys are let in with the chisel (d, Fig. 3) ; the pocket 
formed by two oblique saw - cuts, the bottom beveled with the 
chisel and secured by two small nails, and the top screwed {e, Fig. 
3). The head b, sill c, and a portion of the sub-sill {d, Fig. 4), are 
of the same length, the sills beveled before nailing in place. The 
sub-sill should be grooved on the under side, to receive the siding, 
and prevent draughts under the window {d, Fig. 2). 

The top parting-strip is the full length of the groove, the side 
parting-strips butting against it to hold it in place ; usually none 
of these strips are nailed, the paint serving to secure them. If the 
hanging-stiles are chamfered, beaded, or molded, the joint with the 
top must be like that of Fig. 8, Exercise 16. 

Door-frames are much simpler in construction. The diagrams, 
Figs. 5 and 6, give the necessary parts for an outside door 7' high 
and 2' 10" wide. The jambs, a, are rabbeted and grooved to receive 
the head. The sill is nailed to the ends of the jambs. Frames 
for inside doors are made of three pieces, the jambs and head. 

Window and door-frames are built at the same time or before 
the frame is put up, and are placed in position before the siding is 
nailed on. 

The diagrams in this Exercise are drawn to a scale of ^" 
tol'. 



WINDOW AND DO OB FRAMES. 



127 




128 ELEMENTS OF HOUSE-BUILDING. 

Exercise 30.— Inclosing a Building. 

A building is inclosed by sheathing, placing window and door 
frames in position, putting on building jjaper, siding and shingling. 

If a frame is braced by oblique studs at the corners and possi- 
bly in the middle, the sheathing-boards are nailed on horizontally ; 
but, if not braced by studs, it should be temporarily secured by 
oblique boards nailed on the inside of the studs, and the sheathing 
put on at about an angle of 45°. In Fig. 1, a represents the foun- 
dation, h the sill, c, c the studs, e, e the sheathijig, which passes 
down over the sills, and is firmly nailed throughout. 

Sheathing is usually composed of rough hemlock boards, 10" 
wide, 1" thick, and 13' long. 

The water-table, ^, Fig. 1, is specially molded to cover the 
joint between the foundation and sills, and mitered at the corners. 
Next, the window and door frames are fastened in position, with 
the hanging-stiles against the sheathing, and the corner-boards, i, 
carefully nailed in place. These boards are usually 1^" thick, one 
2" wide and the other 3^" wide, and beaded, chamfered, or molded 
on the outer edge. The building paper is fastened to the sheath- 
ing with tacks, a little in advance of the siding (/, Fig. 1). 

The siding is now put on, beginning at the bottom {h, A, Fig. 
1). The joints between the boards are marked with try-square and 
pencil, and sawed very carefully to keep out wind and rain ; the 
joints should always come opposite a stud for secure nailing. Two 
nails are driven at each stud, one in the middle of the board and 
the other just above the lap, as shown at y. Other forms of siding 
are shown at h and I, but are not as good as that at li. 

Fig. 2 shows the prejoaration for shingles and the manner of 
putting them on. The first three layers (c, d, e) are put on over- 
lapping, as shown at h ; then, 6" from the edge, a chalk-line is 
marked on the layer, e, and the next row, /, nailed with this line as 
a guide. The projecting part of the roof is finished with dressed 
boards, of which the one covering the ends of the rafters («, Fig. 
2) is put on last and should project about ^" below that covering 
the under sides. 

Fig. 3 shows a form of gutter used on overhanging roofs, like 
that of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 shows the form of the usual tin-lined gutter. 

In all work that is to be painted, the uails must be punched. 



mOLOSINO THE BUILDING. 



120 




130 ELEMENTS OF HOUSE-BUILDING. 

Exercise 31.— Laying Floors. Trimming. 

Starting at one side, the floor-boards are laid with the tongued 
edge out (a, Fig. 1). Joints, h, marked with try-square and pen- 
cil, must come over a joist, and be as far removed from other 
joints as possible. Each board must be hammered up tight 
against the one behind it, using for this purpose a portion of 
a board with the groove, as shown at c. The nails are driven 
obliquely, near the face of the board on the tongued side, as 
shown at d, and with the drawn blow described in Exercise 4. 
If a joist is too low, a small chip must be placed between it and 
the floor-board before nailing; or if too high, it should be cut 
down with an adz. When the floor is complete, a smoothing- 
plane should be passed over those places where the boards are not 
flush. 

Partitions are built by laying on the floor a stud, as at e, Fig. 1, 
and holding a corresponding one against the joists above ; between 
these place the studs, 16" from centers, using braces wherever pos- 
sible. Studs are usually doubled at the doorways. 

In trimming, the wood- work must be fitted to irregular plastered 
walls or floors by scribing, which is illustrated in Fig. 2. The 
base-board, «, is placed on blocks or nails a short distance above 
the floor, and the compasses, c, run along near its edge, so as to 
mark on it a line, J, corresponding to the uneven floor indicated 
by the broken line, 5, b. The board is now sawed with a rip-saw, 
using the line ^ as a guide. By carefully adjusting the ends of the 
board to be scribed, the opposite edge may be brought flush with 
other portions of the trim. 

Fig. 3 gives an example of a window-trim, with the shape 
indicated by shaded spaces. The base is returned at a. The 
inside sill, fZ, laps over the sill of the frame ; c is the stop-bead 
which completes the groove in the frame for the lower sash ; 
and the outer member of the molding, J, is scribed to the plastered 
wall. 

Fig. 4 is an example of a simple wooden mantel. The bottom, 
a, is scribed to the floor, and the shelf, b, to the wall. 

Fig. 5 gives a form of base. The board, a, is scribed to the floor, 
the molding, J, nailed to the studs, and the molding, c, nailed to the 
floor, thereby preventing draughts. 



LAYING FLOORS. TRIMMING. 



131 



Ex. 31. 




Fig. 1 




Fig. 3 



Fig. 4 



Fig. 5 



132 ELEMENTS OF HOUSE-BUILDING. 

Exercise 32.— Construction of a Sash. 

While in former times the smaller size and greater cost of glass 
led to uniformity in the construction of the sash, at present there 
are few designers who think at all of adapting the window to the 
size of the glass ; but, reversing that practice, design the window, 
and then cut the glass to fit. 

The regular sizes for small panes are 6" X 8", 7" X 9", 8" X 10", 
9" X 11", and 10" X 12", from which the sash and window-frame 
are easily computed, if the dimensions are laid off on rods. Fig. 1, 
a, shows one side of a rod, upon which is laid out the width of a 
sash to hold three 8" by 10" lights, and at h is shown the side of 
the rod on which is measured the height of the sash. 

In Fig. 2 parts of the rod are enlarged to show the details of 
the marking, the letters corresponding with those of Fig. 1 ; c 
shows the top-rail, 2" wide, with a 1^" tenon. From the rabbet, 
which is y^^," for the glass in the top-rail, to that of the first bar, is 
10^". The bar is i" wide. At e is shown the meeting-rail, 1^", 
and at / the bottom-rail. From such a rod, carefully laid out, 
many sashes and frames may be marked out. 

The rails and stiles are 1|-" thick, and molded with a sash- 
plane ; in the absence of which a flat chamfer will serve just as 
well. 

The meeting-rails are made in one piece, as shown in Fig. 3 : a 
is the upper stile with its mortise, h the lower stile, c the meeting- 
rail of the upper sash, and is not molded, but simply rabbeted for 
the glass; f7, the meeting-rail for the lower sash,is molded, and not 
rabbeted ; there is a groove about ^" wide and ^" deep for receiv- 
ing the glass ; the rails are sawed apart, as shown at e. When the 
sashes are put in the building, the bevels are planed and fitted 
tightly, as shown in Fig. 4. 

The vertical bars are mortised through the rails, and have small 
mortises, ^" square, for the insertion of the horizontal bars, which 
are made the full width of the sash, but sawed into separate pieces 
just before putting together, as shown in Fig. 6. 

Excepting those of the short bars, all of the joints are glued, 
the mortises wedged, and the dovetails pinned. 

Fig. 5 shows the groove and socket for the sash-cord; a is 
plowed, and b bored with a long spoon-bit. 



SASH. 



133 




134 ELEMENTS OF HOUSE BUILDING. 

Exercise 33.— Construction of a Door. 

Doors are either batten or panel. 

Batten-doors are made by fastening several tongued and grooved 
boards to two or three cross-pieces, with clinch-nails or screws. If 
heavy, the doors should be braced with diagonal pieces between the 
cross-pieces. 

The parts of a panel-door to fit the frame of Fig. 5, Example 
29, are shown in Fig. 1 : a is the top-rail, h the lock-rail, c the bot- 
tom-rail, d the stile, e the muntin, and f a side view of the stile 
showing the mortises. 

The joints are mortise and tenon, as indicated by the dotted 
lines. After the mortises and tenons are cut, the inner edges of 
the pieces are grooved to receive the panels. 

Fig. 3 shows an enlarged view of the joint of the top-rail and 
stile : a is the tenon, ■^" thick, J the relish, c the mortise, e the 
groove for the panel, and d the groove enlarged with a chisel to 
receive the relish. This may be taken as a sample for all of the 
joints. The tenon is at first the full width of the rail, and about 
^" longer than the width of the stile. 

The parts of the door, after the panels have been fitted, are 
glued, forced together by clamps such as that shown in Fig. 4, 
Exercise 19, and wedged. 

The panels are plain, according to the section (Fig. 1), or raised, 
in which the material is thick, the sides cut down to fit the grooves, 
and the middle portion molded around its edge, as in Fig. 3, Ex- 
ercise 39 ; or a plain panel molded, as in Fig. 6, Exercise 16. 

Fig. 3 shows a portion of the frame of a blind or shutter ; it is 
made on the same principle as a door, but smaller ; the joints, in- 
stead of being glued and wedged, are white-leaded and pinned, 
and in place of panels may have laths, the ends of which have a 
projecting pin to fit into holes in the stiles of the frame. These 
holes must be bored to the same depth, and the distance between 
the ends of the pins of the lath should be a trifle greater than that 
between the bottoms of the holes in opposite stiles, or the laths 
will drop instead of retaining any position given them. 

The rod is fastened to the laths with staples, one set of which 
is driven into the rod, and the other into the middle of the inner 
edge of the laths. 



DO OB. 



135 




136 ELEMENTS OF HOUSE-BUILDING. 

Exercise 34.— Construction of Stairs. 

For ordinary stairs, the single step should have a riser («, Fig. 
1), between 6i" and 7i" high, and a tread, h, from 9" to 11". The 
distance between the floors, say 9' 8", is measured in the build- 
ing, and is divided to obtain a riser about the proper height, giving 
sixteen risers, 7i" high. If there are sixteen treads, and the space 
allowed for the stairs is 12', then it will require 9" for each. 

After carefully measuring the space for the stairway, the height, 
width, and length, the work is laid out, cut, and partly put together 
in the workshop. From the height and length the pitch, or angle, 
of the stairs is determined. 

The details for the step are shown in Fig. 1 : the riser, a, is |" 
thick, grooved near the bottom of its face, and the outer end cut 
for a miter, as shown at d. The tread is If" or 1^" thick, tongued 
at h for insertion into the next riser, grooved on the under side 
near the front for its own riser, its front edge rounded, mitered 
at the end-, and two dovetail mortises, c, c, to receive the balusters 
cut into the end, as shown at e. The tread and riser, with the 
quarter hollow molding, are glued together: sometimes to secure 
a better joint, blocks are glued in the angle under the tread, as 
shown in Fig. 4, Exercise 20. 

Fig. 2 represents the wall-string, «, grooved to receive the steps, 
which are forced against the front edges, with wedges glued and 
driven at J, h, for both tread and riser. The bottom riser is not 
wedged. 

Fig. 3 shows the face-string, the upright edges of which are 
mitered as at i ; the edge, c, is square, to receive the treads, which 
are firmly nailed near the base of the baluster. The face-string is 
usually stiffened by a stud or joist, as at e. Fig. 3. 

A plain newel is shown in Fig. 4. The section at a shows the 
structure through the base and the way in which it is fastened to 
the riser, 5, and the string, c, the tread being cut away to allow it 
to pass down to the floor. 

Fig. 5 shows the balusters ; the shorter, «, coincides with the 
face of the riser, the longer, J, is placed with its face one half way 
between the risers. 

After the balusters are in position, the molding is completed 
on the face-string, as in the upper part of Fig. 4. 



STAIRS. 



137 




138 ELEMENTS OF EOUSE-BUILDING. 

Exercise 35.— Laying out and sFiaping the Hand-rail. 

The hand-rail should always have a gradual and graceful change 
from one direction to another. In Fig. 1, a 5 represents a tread, 
b d Hi riser, and a d the pitch, which is the direction of the hand- 
rail ; c a point on the axis of the cylinder around which the stairs 
turn ; « e a quarter of an ellipse, and represents the bending of the 
center of the hand-rail in passing from the inclined to the hori- 
zontal position ; eg 2i quadrant, through which the center of the 
hand-rail bends before becoming straight again. 

This double bending, or wreath, is made in two pieces, joined 
at e. We will taice for illustration the elliptical one. In Fig. 2, 
c represents the axis of the cylinder at the landing, d the face of 
the string, e the line of the balusters and center of the hand-rail, 
a c the tread, a h the riser, c b the pitch, ab c the angle used in 
marking the work ; c g and g i are semi-diameters of the ellipse 
through which the hand-rail passes. 

With the lengths eg and (/ i, of Fig. 2, construct the lines ab 
and bcoi Fig. 3 ; with i h, of Fig. 2, lay off a/ and a h in Fig. 3 ; 
with gf, of Fig. 2, lay off c e and c d in Fig. 3, and complete the 
elliptical form, fed h. This form, the mold, is cut out of a thin 
board, and used in laying out the work. 

Fig. 4 represents a block of wood, thicker than the hand-rail, 
and sawed to the form of the mold. With a T-bevel adjusted to 
the angle, ab c, of Fig. 2, and applied to the side, d e, Fig. 3, slide 
the mold along the line a b, Fig. 3, until the center of the hand- 
rail in this inclined position comes to the center of the end of the 
wood, as shown at e g, Fig. 3. A rectangle, inclosing the form of 
the rail, is now drawn on the end, eg, and also on the end aty, Fig. 
3. The corners of these rectangles are now united by curved lines 
drawn along a thin straight-edge pressed to the hollow and round 
surfaces, as in Fig. 4. 

The block is then cut to these lines, producing a shape as shown 
in Fig. 5 — in which it must be remembered the side a, and also 
that directly opposite, are cylindrical surfaces. 

The elements of the molding are now marked from the edges, 
and worked with gouge, spoke-shave, and planes specially shaped 
for the purpose. In practice a straight portion of the rail is 
worked on the same block with the wreath, a h and g li\ Fig. 1. 



HAND-RAIL. 



139 




140 WOOD-WORKINO. 

Exercise 36.— Use of the Frame-Saw. Bending Wood. 

For small wo^'k, a narrow saw, with fine teeth, as at a, d. Fig. 
1, is used ; but for ordinary carpenter's scroll-work, a saw like that 
shown at c and d^ held in a frame, as in Fig 4, Plate B, is em- 
ployed. The back of the saw is beveled to turn easily when cut- 
ting small circles, and it will cut better if drawn very tight. 

To cut out a circular hole in a board, bore first with a center- 
bit («, Fig. 2), close up to the line, then start the saw from this hole, 
as at h. In cutting narrow angles in scroll-work, the saw is sent 
all the way into the corner, as at a, Fig. 3, then backed up to cut 
as shown at 5, the piece c is taken out, the saw turned and the 
piece cut, as at d. Scroll-work is finished with the chisel, spoke- 
shave, or rasp, and smoothed with sand-paper. 

There are many ways of bending wood, but the best is to steam 
and bend it around a form, as shown in Fig. 4. The form, a, is 
fastened to a plank or the shop-floor, the piece, J, steamed thor- 
oughly, bent in place, and held until dry by blocks nailed against 
it, as at d ; or, if several pieces are to receive the same shape, by 
pins driven into holes, as at c. Boat-builders use planks with pins 
on both sides of the steamed stick in bending the ribs. Pieces to 
be bent with steam are usually worked to the desired shape first, 
then bent, and when dry are finished with the spoke-shave. 

In bending moldings, if steam is not convenient, they may be 
sawed, as shown at a. Fig. 5 and Fig. 6. In bending the face- 
string of stairs, the method shown in Fig. 7 is employed. The 
string has a series of grooves cut parallel with the axis of the 
cylinder around which the string is to bend ; it is then wet with 
hot water, and bent over a cylinder, or saddle, and the strips, «, 
fitted and glued in. When the glue has set, the tops of the strips 
may be planed down, and a piece of canvas glued over the bent 
portion. Fig. 8 shows another method of arriving at the same re- 
sult, in which the string acts as a sort of veneer to the pieces, a. 
Where a bend and twist are to be given, the wood may be made up 
of several thin pieces glued together, as in Fig. 9. 

In bending wood, compress the fibers on the inside of the curve, 
to retain its strength. 

The curve of the form («, Fig. 4) should be a little quicker, to 
allow for a slight spring back of the wood when released. 



FHAME-SAW. BENDING WOOD. 



141 




142 WO OD- WORKING. 

Exercise 37.— Construction of a Pattern. 

Pattern makers receive drawings of finished iron-work ; from 
these drawings tliey must lay out and construct tlie wood- work nec- 
essary to obtain molds for the castings. 

Fig. 1 represents a cast-iron pillow-block, to receive an inch- 
shaft ; Fig. 2, the plan of the box without the cap. The surfaces 
through, from a to b, Fig. 1, are to be finished. 

Fig. 3 represents the pattern for the cap ; it is made of four 
pieces, a, b, c, d, nailed together. 

The measures taken from the drawings, or specifications, are 
increased a small amount, about ^" to 1', to allow for shrinkage of 
the iron. 

Those surfaces which are to be finished should be about ■^^" 
thicker than shown in the drawings. In Fig. 3 the wood beyond 
the broken line, e, e, shows the allowance made on the pattern for 
finishing. 

The smoothest surface, containing the least number of blow- 
holes, on a casting, is the one which was down ; therefore, the pat- 
tern must be built with that in view. In order to facilitate draw- 
ing the pattern from the sand, it should have its vertical sides 
slightly inclined and very smooth. 

The base. Fig. 4, is made of the several pieces, «, b, c, d, and e, to 
secure smoother surfaces than could be obtained by cutting the 
pattern from a solid block. The lower part of the piece, d, may 
be made separately. 

The holes for the bolts are either to be bored in the metal or 
cored. In the latter case, a core-print, /, is fastened in the proper 
place, and the molder inserts in the mold a core of the proper size. 

The box is to have hollows, to receive Babbit metal linings; 
these hollows must be cored out ; c, Fig. 3, and e, Fig. 4, are the 
core-prints, and Fig. 6, the core-box for the hollows, which are in- 
dicated by broken lines in Figs. 3, 4, and 5. The core-box is 
made of five pieces ; the block, a, with the thin pieces, Z>, nailed to 
its ends ; the pieces, c, c, held in position by dowels, are removed, 
to free the core. 

The pattern has its nail-holes filled with wax or putty, and is 
varnished Avith shellac dissolved in alcohol. The core-prints are 
covered with shellac varnish in which lamp-black has been mixed. 



PATTERN FOR CASTING. 



143 



Ex.37. 



CL 



SZZl 



Fig. 1 



olio 



00 



Fig. 



Fig. 



^ 




Fig. 4 



I 



Fig. 



c 


c 

i L 


^ w 



Fig. 6 



144 WOOD-WOEKING. 

Exercise 38.— Shaping a Boat-Model. 

Material.— A. block of pine, 2" high, 1|" wide, and 9" long. 
Work. — To chisel out a half-model, conforming to the lines given in 
the plans. 

The design, which is that of a common yawl, is divided into 
spaces, 1" apart, as shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2; ah represents the 
water-line, and c «? an arbitrary vertical section through the model. 

Fig. 3 gives the full size and form of the model for each inch. 
The numbers correspond with those of Figs. 1 and 2. 

With tracing-paper transfer these curves to cardboard or thin 
veneers ; cut the hollow sides, thus forming templates, which are 
to be used in testing the work as it progresses. 

Mark all around the block pencil-lines 1" apart. Lay off on 
these lines the vertical heights of each of the spaces on the front 
and back of the block, and through the points thus obtained draw 
curves representing the deck. Chisel down the top to these lines, 
and restore the inch lines on the deck surface. 

Lay off on the inch lines of the deck the horizontal widths of 
each, and, drawing a curve through these, obtain the outer curve 
of Fig. 2. On the bottom lay off the widths to obtain the inner 
curve, e, Fig. 2. Saw the inclinations of bow and stern, and mark 
on the stern end the shape of that part from its template. In 
order to hold the block its flat side may be fastened with screws to 
another block and the curved side shaped with the chisel and 
gouge. When finished, the model may be fastened to a thin hard- 
wood piece, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, making it more ornament- 
al ; or, for a better effect, the block may be built up of ^" pieces 
and thin dark veneers, all glued or screwed together. 

Besides testing with the templates, the fingers should be passed 
lightly over the side, to detect high and irregular places, which 
must be pared down. 

Finish with fine sand-paper held in the fingers. 

In practice the boat-builder constructs his models of thin pieces, 
usually i" thick, dowelled together, so that they may be easily 
taken apart. After shaping the model the pieces are marked, 
separated, and the measures obtained from the pieces give him the 
details with which he makes the curves on the block (Fig. 4, Exer- 
cise 36) for bending the ribs. 



BOAT-MODEL. 



145 



Ex. 38. 



rr~^ 


__^^ 










_-==^= 


Id 


\vj 


10 


3 


14 


|5 


l6 i 
1 


js 


"vt 










__t^ 


^\ 




/ 















Fig. 1 




Fig. 2 




146 WO OD- WORKING. 

Exercise 39.— Veneering. 

Material. — Block of pine large enough to furnish a cube of 3". 

Six pieces of veneers, preferably of different woods and as near 
the same thickness as possible. 
Work. — 1. To plane the cube. 

2. Glue veneers on opposite surfaces. 

3. Polish the veneers. 

One of the most effective ways of finishing wood is to cover it 
with a thin layer of some fancy variety. Sometimes the fancy 
wood lacks strength, or can not be obtained sufficiently large, or 
possibly is too expensive to be used in solid form. Then, to obtain 
its effect, a common wood must be used as a base and the fancy 
wood as a veneer. 

Veneers are of varying thickness, from ^" up to ^". Because 
of the greater tendency of hard wood to warp and shrink, struct- 
ures like doors are made with an inside of pine and outer coats of 
veneei's, ^" or more in thickness. For ordinary cabinet-work, ve- 
neers are about ^^" thick. 

Thick veneers, as a, in Fig. 1, are prepared for gluing, as di- 
rected in Exercise 19. The surface should always be scratched, 
unless the wood holds glue very well. 

The cube. Fig. 2, is made true by carefully sawing and planing 
the ends first, and from them squaring the sides. The ends and 
sides must be perfectly flat, or the veneers will receive no support 
at the corners. 

The ends are now sized — that is, coated with very thin glue, to 
cause better adhesion. 

The veneers, g, Fig. 2, are cut at least ^" larger all around than 
the size of the block, roughened with the iron of the scratch-plane, 
taken out of the plane, and held in the hand ; and the opposite 
side marked with a pencil to distinguish the surface. 

Next, prepare two cauls {h, Fig. 2), |" larger all around than a 
face of the cube, about 1" thick, and with one side very flat. These 
are kept hot when ready for use. 

Cover the scratched surface of two veneers and the ends of the 
cube with glue ; place the veneers on the ends, the hot cauls on the 
veneers, and apply the hand-screws with great care. The hot cauls 
remelt the glue, and therefore this operation need not be hastened 



VENEERING. 



147 




148 WOOD-WORKING. 

as in the case of ordinary gluing. If the veneers are split or have 
small holes through which the glue may ooze, place a piece of 
thick paper between the cauls and veneers to prevent them from 
adhering. 

When thoroughly dry, the veneers are trimmed, and the next 
pair glued on. 

The veneered surfaces are now planed with a block-plane or 
very true smoothing-plane, observing the directions in Exercise 24, 
then sand -papered, coated with a filling varnish, and set aside to 
harden. 

If it is desired to put fancy designs in veneers on the cube, 
they should first be sawed, and if straight, edged with the plane, in 
the position shown in Fig. 7, Exercise 15, and glued to a piece of 
strong paper, as in Fig. 4. This is then scratched and glued on in 
place of the single piece. 

The raised portion of panels is frequently veneered, as shown 
in Fig. 3. In this case the veneer should be of the same kind of 
wood, as a walnut-root veneer on a walnut panel. Strong contrasts 
should be avoided. 

In cabinet-work, recesses are sometimes cut to receive veneers ; 
these may be cut out with the chisel, or, better, with a router, shown 
in Fig. 5 ; a is the cutting-edge, projecting the proper depth below 
the smooth surface of the tool, adjusted and fastened by the pinch- 
screw, h ; c, c, are projections against which the thumbs are applied 
in pushing the tool. 

Wooden routers may be made of a thick piece of hard wood, 
with a throat for the insertion of a chisel and wedge to secure it. 

A very small veneer may be set by gluing and holding a hot 
iron against it for a few moments. This is of service in repairing 
broken or loose veneers. 

Bags of hot sand are sometimes used as cauls in veneering un- 
even surfaces. 

Polishing. 

Fasten the veneered cube in the vise, using cloth between the 
jaws and the cube. If it is too low, a hand-screw may be fastened 
in the vise and the cube held in the hand-screw. The work will 
be hastened if the pores of open-grained woods are closed with a 
filler. This filler, which may be obtained already prepared, or 



POLISHING. 149 

made by mixing chalk or plaster with turpentine to a paste, is 
rubbed in with a cotton cloth, and the cube set aside for a few 
hours to become nearly dry, when the excess of the filler is removed 
with a sharp steel scraper, and the surface smoothed with fine 
sand-paper moved in the direction of the grain. 

To polish, take a wad of cotton as large as a walnut, place it 
within a clean cotton cloth about 5" square, and saturate with 
shellac varnish ; twist the corners of the cloth, hold in the fingers, 
and pass a finger moistened with a drop of raw linseed-oil over the 
surface of the rubber. Apply the rubber with small circular strokes 
until the entire surface has been gone over, and the grain seems 
filled. Turn the cube and go over the same process with each of 
the other sides. Set the cube aside for a day. Repeat the process, 
scraping and sand-papering, if necessary, and again rubbing in var- 
nish with a new rubber until the sunken spots are filled. If the rub- 
ber begins to stick, it must be slightly oiled, but the least amount 
of oil used the better for the polishing. To finish, moisten a clean 
cloth with a few drops of alcohol, and rub the surface briskly for 
a minute or two. The palm of the hand is frequently used to put 
the finishing touch to a polished surface ; this should be done before 
the varnish becomes hard. 

If furniture varnish is used, the wood is filled, then covered 
with several coats of varnish, applied with a flat brush, allowing 
each coat to become perfectly hard, and smoothing with fine sand- 
paper before the next is put on ; the surface is then polished with 
rotten-stone and petroleum, and rubbed perfectly dry with cloths 
or cotton- waste. 

Painting. 

A new brush should stand in linseed-oil ten or twelve hours, 
after which it is ready for use. When finished the brush should 
be thoroughly cleaned with turpentine, and put aside in such a 
way that the bristles are not bent, but lie out straight. The bristles 
may be wi'apped in cloth or paper to prevent them from spreading. 
In the absence of turpentine, kerosene or soap and water will clean 
the brush nearly as well. 

To prepare work for painting, the nails should be punched — 
that is, driven about ^" below the surface, and the wood sand- 
papered. In sand-papering a soft wood, coarse paper is bent 



150 WO OD- WORKING. 

around a block, 3" by 5" and 1" thick, with a layer of cork, ^" 
thick, glued to its face ; the wood is gone over with oblique and 
circular strokes to cut down ridges and high places, then a few 
strokes with the grain to remove scratches. Next, with a fine pa- 
per and the block rub only in the direction of the grain until very 
smooth. Surfaces to be varnished or polished should always be 
sand-papered with the grain. Before painting pine-woods, the 
knots and resin-pockets must be covered with size, or, better, with 
thick shellac-varnish. 

The first, or priming coat, is a mixture of white-lead, raw and 
boiled linseed-oils ; or, it may contain red-lead and other pigments 
and turpentine ; but, in any case, the drying-oil is in greater and 
the pigment in less proportion than in ordinary paint. To obtain 
an even flow of paint from the brush, hold it nearly perpendicular 
to the surface, and allow the ends only of the bristles to touch. 

When the priming is dry, the nail-holes, cracks, and defects 
generally are puttied, and the work smoothed with sand-paper, if 
small. 

The work is then painted two or more coats with the regular 
mixture of white-lead, oil, and turpentine, lightly sand-papering 
the first and second, if very smooth work is desired. The strokes 
should be long, even, and with the grain. If the subject is a door, 
paint the panels first, then the muntins, next the rails, and lastly 
the styles, thus making the brush-marks correspond to the grain of 
the wood. 

For inside work the paint should contain about one half as 
much turpentine as oil, which, in drying, will give a dull surface ; 
but for outside work little or no turpentine should be used to se- 
cure a good and lasting surface, and, in drying, the surface retains 
its luster. 



INDEX 



Active cells, 13, 15 
Age of trees, 14, 20. 

of wood, 27. 
Agaric, 43. 
Agaricus melleus, 43. 
Anchored beam, 124. 
Angle of cutting edge, 80, 82. 
Angle-piece, 108. 

right, 58. 

square, 58. 
Annual ring, 13, 14, 17. 
Applewood, 35. 
Apron, 57. 
Ash, 19, 26, 34, 33. 
Attic ceiling, 124. 
Auger-bit, 60, 92. 
Ax, 60. 

Babbit metal, 142. 
Back-saw, 60. 
Baluster, 136. 
Bamboo, 32. 
Bar, sash, 132. 
Bark, 13, 14, 15. 
Base, 130. 
Basswood, 36, 38. 
Bast, 13, 15, 16. 
Batten-door, 134. 
Bead, 88. 

double, 88. 
Bead-plane, 88. 
Beech, 33, 38. 



Beetle, 46. 

boring through metal, 49 

grub of, 46. 

mouth parts of. 48. 

pupa of, 46. 

stages of, 46. 
Bench-ax, 60. 
Bench-dog, 58. 
Bench-hook, 38. 
Bench-knife, 58. 
Bench-screw, 58. 
Bench-stop, 58. 
Bench-vise, 68. 
Bending moldings, 140. 

wood, 38, 140. 
Binding of saw, 76. 
Birch, 32, 38. 
Bird's-eye maple, 25. 
Bit, auger, 60, 92. 

center, 60, 90, 94. 

countersinking, 60, 

dowel, 104. 

reaming, 60. 

twist, 60. 
Black iron wood, 19. 

spruce, 30, 38. 

walnut, 19, 33, 38. 
Blind, window, 134. 
Blind-dovetailed box, 122. 
Blind -mortise, 108. 
Blind-rod, 134. 
Block-plane, 116. 



152 



INDEX. 



Blow-holes, 142. 
Board, 22. 

sawing a, 22, 110. 
Boat-model, 144. 
Bolted joint, 94. 
Bordered pits, 15, 16. 
Borers, timber, 45. 
Boring for screws, 100. 

of grub, 45. 
Boring insects, 21, 45. 
Borings, appearance of, 45. 
Bottom- rail, 132, 134. 
Box, 142. 

dovetailed, 110. 
Boxwood, 3'Z. 
Brace, 60. 
Branching of stems, 19. 

Breaking of wood, 26, 38. 

Bridging, 124. 

Building, inclosing a, 128. 

Building-paper, 128. 

Bundles, fibrous, 18, 15, 32. 

Buprestid, 49. 

Buprestis Vh-cfinica, 49. 

Burls, 51. 

Butternut, 34, 38. 

Buttonwood, 34, 38. 

Butts, 118. 

Cambium, 13, 14, 15, 18. 
Cap, 60, 12, 142. 
Care of tools, 56. 
Carpenter-bee, 50. 
Carpenter-moth, 51. 
Carpenter's pencil, 58. 
Carpenter's horse, 58. 
Carpentry, 40. 
Carving, 40. 
Casing, 126. 

Casting, pattern for, 30, 36, 142. 
Cauls, 146. 

hot sand, 148. 
Cedar, 19, 31, 38, 53. 
Ceiling, 124. 
Cell, contents of, 18. 



Cell, pitted, 14, 11. 

wood, 14, 15, 16, 11. 
Cellulose, 18. 
Cell-wall, 16, 18, 2r., 
Center-bit, 60, 90, 94. 
Center-bit stop, 94. 
Centimeter, 58. 
Chamfer, 66, 90. 
Charcoal, 18. 
Charring, 53. 
Checks, wind, 23. 
Cherry, wild, 35, 38. 
Chestnut, 19, 33, 38. 
Chimney, framing for, 124. 
Chisel, 60, 64, 80, 82. 

use of, 64, 66. 
Clamp, 58, 106. 

iron, 58. 
Claw-hammer, 60. 
Clear lumber, 22. 
Clinching nails, 70. 
Clytus speciosa, 49. 
Coal-tar, 53. 
Color of wood, 27. 
Compasses, 58. 
Compass-saw, 60. 
Composition of wood, 18. 
Compressibility of wood, 26. 
Contents of cell, 18. 
Coped moldings, 68. 
Core, 142. 

Core-box, 68, 104, 142. 
Core-print, 142. 
Cork, 26. 

Corner-boards, 128. 
Corner posts, 124. 
Countersink, 60. 
Creosote, 53. 
Cross-cut saw, 78. 

filing, 84. 
Cross-grain, 20. 
Curled maple, 35. 
Cut nails, 70. 
Cutting trees, 21. 
Cypress, 31, 38, 53. 



INDEX. 



153 



Dcedalia, 44. 

Dampness, effect of, on wood, 2V, 52. 

Decay of trees, 20, 42. 

of wood, 21, 29, 42, 54. 
Decimeter, 58 
Defects in milling, 29. 

in wood, 28. 
Degrees, measuring, 58. 
Demafium ffiganteum, 44. 
Density of wood, 25. 
Discoloration of wood, 52. 
Door, 134. 
Door-frame, 126. 
Door-hinge, 118. 
Double bead, 88. 
Double plane-iron, 60. 
Dovetail-joint, 69, 96, 110, 112, 120, 122. 
Dowel-bit, 104 
Dowel-joint, 104 
Dowel-plate, 104. 
Drawer, 120. 
Draw-knife, 60. 
Drawing, 8, 62. 
Dressed lumber, 22. 
Dry rot, 44. 

Drying of wood, 22, 26. 
Durability of wood, 27. 

Ebony, 31. 

Edge, cutting, 80, 82. 
Elasticity of wood, 18, 23, 26. 
Elements composing wood, 18. 
Emery-wheel for sharpening, 82. 
Engraving on wood, 25, 35, 37. 
Epidermis, 15. 

Face of work, 64. 
Face measure, 29. 
Face-edge, 64. 
Face-string, 136. 

bending, 140. 
Felling timber, 21. 
Fibro-vascular bundle, 13, 15, 32. 
File, triangular, 84. 
Filing saws, 84. 



Filler, 148. 
Filling the grain, 148. 
Fillister, 60. 
Finishing, 116, 142. 
Float, 60, 102. 
Floor, laying a, 130. 
Floor- joists, 124. 
Foot, running, 29. 

square, 29. 
Fore-plane, 60. 
Foundation of building, 124. 
Frame, door, 126. 

head of, 126. 

molding a, 100. 

window, 126. 
Frame-saw, 140. 
Framing, 124. 
Free water in plant, 18. 
Fungus, 19, 41. 

growth in wood, 42, 44. 

nitrogen in, 41. 

spores of, 41 

tear, 43, 44. 

water in, 44. 
Furniture-joints, 1 08. 

varnish, 149. 

Gable, 124. 

Gauge for grinding, 82. 

marking, 58. 
Georgia pine, 38. 
Glass, 132. 
Glue, 106. 

Glued joints, 26, 106, 108. 
Glue-pot, 58, 106. 
Gluing, 106. 

a box, 114. 

veneers, 146. 
Gouge, 60, 68, 80, 82. 
Grain, 24, 72. 

coarse, 25. 

cross, 24. 

curled, 25. 

even, 25. 

filling the, 148. 



154 



INDEX. 



Grain, fine, 25. 

silver, 25. 

straight, 24. 
Grindstone, 82. 
Grooved joints, 88. 
Growth of trees, 19. 

spring, 14, 16. 

summer, 14, 16. 
Grub, beetle, 46. 
Gunstock, 34. 
Gutter, 128. 

Half-joint, 86. 

modified forms of, 88. 
Hammer, 57, 70. 
Hand-rail, 104, 138. 
Hand-screw, 58, 106. 
Hanging-stile, 126. 
Hardness, 18, 25, 38. 
Head of frame, 126. 
Heart-wood, 14, 18. 
Hemlock, 28, 30, 88. 
Hickory, 19, 26, 34, 38. 
Hinge, 118. 
Hollow-plane, 60. 
Hook and eye, 118. 
Hooked teeth of saw, 76. 
Horn-bug, 50. 
Hung ceiling, 124. 
Hymenomycetes^ 43. 

Immersion of wood in water, 21, 27, 52. 

of logs in water, 52. 
Inclosing a building, 128. 
Insects, parasitic, 19, 45. 
Iron, plane, 60. 

Jack-plane, 60, 72. 
Jambs of door, 126. 
Jaws of beetle, 47. 
Jersey pine, 30. 
Joinery, 40. 
Joint, blind-dovetail, 122. 

blind-mortise, 94. 

bolted, 94. 



Joint, dovetail, 69. 

dowel, 104. 

glued, 106, 114. 

grooved, 88. 

half, 86, 88. 

keyed, 86. 

lap, 88. 

miter, 98, 102. 

mortise, 90. 

oblique-dovetail, 88, 

of studs, 124. 

pinned, 92. 

rabbeted, 88. 

scarf, 86. 

screwed, 108. 

shoulder of, 88. 

stretcher, 102. 

stub-mortise, 94. 

water-tight, 88. 

wedged, 86. 
Jointer, 60. 

Kerf, 76. 

Kiln-dried wood, 22. 
Kinds of wood, 30. 
Knarls, 51. 
Knife, bench, 58. 

marking with, 78. 
Knots, 28. 

Ladder-form vessels, 17. 
Lap-joint, 88. 
Larva, 46. 
Lath, blind, 134. 
Laying floors, 130. 
Laying out material, 110. 
Level, spirit, 58. 
Lignin, 18. 
Lignum-vitae, 36, 38. 

sap-wood of, 52. 
Lips of beetle, 47. 
Lock-rail, 134. 
Locust 35, 38, 53. 
Logs immersed in water, 21, 27, 52. 

prepared for shipping, 52. 



INDEX. 



155 



Lucanns dama, 50. 
Lumber, 22. 

clear, 22. 

dressed, 22. 

resawed, 22. 

measurement for selling, 29. 

Machinery, wood-working, 39. 
Mahogany, 3t), 3S. 
Mallet, 60, 90. 
5Iandibles, 47. 

muscles of, 47. 
Mantel, 130. 
Maple, bird's-eye, 35. 

curled, 35. 

sugar, 35, 38. 
Marking, rod for, 132. 

with pencil, 66. 
Marking-gauge, 58, 74. 
Match-planes, 60. 
Measurement of lumber, 29 
itechanic, 40. 

Medullary rays, 14, 15, 16, 17. 
Meeting-rail, 132. 
Met~ulius lacrymans, 43, 44. 
Metric rule, 58. 
Millimeter, 58. 
Milling, 21, 29. 

defects in, 29. 
Miter, 98. 

guide for cutting, 100. 
Miter-box, 58, 100. 
Miter-joint, 98, 102. 
Model of boat, 144. 
Modified water, 18. 
Mold, 138. 
Molding, 68, 100. 

bending a, 140. 

coped, 68. 

returned, 68. 
Morrell's saw-set, 84. 
Mortise, 90. 

pinning a, 92. 

stub, 94. 
Mortise-joint, 90. 



Mouth parts of beetle, 48. 
Muntin, 134. 

Muscles of mandibles, 47. 
Mushroom, 41. 
Mycelium, 41. 

Nail, clinch, 70. 

cut, 70. 

punching a, 149. 
Nailing floors, 130. 
Netted vessels, 17. 
Newel, 136. 
Nitrogen in fungus, 41. 

Oak, 20, 21. 

group, 13, 15, 17, 32. 

red, 33, 38. 

white, 19, 26, 32, 38, 53. 
Oak-pruner, 46. 
Oblique dovetail- joint, 96. 
Ogee, 66. 
Oil-can, 58. 
Oil-slip, 58, 80. 
Oil-stone, 58, 80. 
Oregon pine, 19. 

Paint, 24, 27, 53. 

for inside work, 150. 

for outside work, 150. 
Paint-brush, 149. 
Painted clytus, 49. 
Painting, 149. 

a door, 150. 
Palm for walking-sticks, 26. 

group, 13, 14, 16, 20, 32, 
Palmetto, 19, 32. 
Palms, 32. 
Panel, 134. 

door, 134. 

raised, 134. 

veneered, 148. 
Paper, building, 128. 

used in veneering, 148. 
Parallel perspective, 62. 
Parasite, wound, 43, 44. 



156 



INDEX. 



Parasitic insects, 45. 

plants, 41. 
Paring, 64. 
Parting-strips, 126. 
Partitions, 130. 

Patterns for casting, 30, 36, 142. 
Pearwood, 35. 
Pencil, 58. 
Perspective, 62. 
Picture-frames, 102. 
Pillow-block, 142. 
Pine group, 13, 15, 16, 30. 

Jersey, 30. 

white, 19, 2Y, 30, 38. 

yellow, 30, 38. 

weevil, 49. 
Pinning a mortise, 92, 
Pitch of stairs, 136. 
Pith, 13, 14, 15, 32. 
Pits, bordered, 15, 16. 
Pitted vessels, 14, 17. 
Plane, 72, 74. 

block, 116, 

fore, 60. 

hollow, 60. 

jack, 60, 72. 

jointing, 60. 

match, 60. 

rabbet, 60. 

round, 60. 

sash, 60, 132. 

scratch, 60, 106, 146. 

smoothing, 60, 74, 116. 
Plane-iron, 60, 72, 80, 82. 
Plane-stock, 60. 
Plank, 22. 
Plants, parasitic, 41. 
Plow, 60, 120. 
Plumb-bob, 58. 
Pocket in window-frame, 126. 

resin, 28, 150. 
Polishing, 148. 
Polypore, 41, 43. 
Polypoi~us annos'us, 43. 

dryadeus, 44. 



Polyporus, fulvits, 44. 

pini, 44. 

sulphurus, 43. 
Porosity, 25. 

Preservation of wood, 52. 
Priming-coat, 150. 
Frionus unicolor, 50. 
Properties of wood, 24. 
Pulley-stile, 126. 
Pupa, 46. 

Quirk, 68. 

Rabbet, 88. 
Rabbet-plane. 60. 
Rail, bottom, 132, 134. 

lock, 134. 

meeting, 132. 
■ top, 132, 134. 
Raked teeth of saw, 76. 
Rattan, 26, 32. 
Reamer, 60. 
Red cedar, 19, 31, 38. 

oak, 33, 38. 
Redwood, 19, 31, 3S, 53. 
Relish, 134; 

Resawing lumber, 22, 23. 
Resin, 16, 25, 27. 

pockets, 28, 150. 
Return molding, 68. 
Ridge-pole, 124. 
Right angle, 58. 
Ringed vessels, 17. 
Rip-saw, 76. 

filing, 84. 

use of the, 76, 102. 
Riser, 136. 
Rod for marking, 132. 

blind, 134. 
Roebuck beetle, 50. 
Roof- plate, 124. 
Rosewood, 37. 
Rot of wood, 42. 
Round-plane, 60. 
Router, 148. 



INDEX. 



157 



Rubber, polishing, 149. 
Rule, metric, 58. 
two-foot, 58. 
Running foot, 29. 
Rust on tools, 5*7. 

Saddle, 140. 
Sandpapering, 149. 
Sap-wood, 14, 2Y, 28. 
Sash, 132 
Sash-bar, 132. 
Sash-cord, 132. 
Sash-plane, fiO, 132. 
Saw, back, 60. 

binding of, 76. 

compass, 60. 

cross-cut, 60. 

frame, 60. 

mill, 22. 

rip, 60. 

set of, 76, 78, 84. 

tearing action of, 76, 78 

teeth of, 76, 78, 84. 

tenon, 60. 
Saw-beetle, 50. 
Saw-filing, 84. 
Sawing-boards, 22, 110. 
Scale, three quarters, 58. 
Scarf -joint, 86. 
Scratch-plane, 60, 106, 146. 
Screw-driver, 60. 
Scribing, 130. 
Scroll-work, 140. 
Season for cutting, 21. 
Seasoned wood, 18, 22, 52. 
Sections in drawing, 62. 
Set of saw-teeth, 76, 78, 84. 
Shaky wood, 23, 28. 
Sharpening tools, 80, 82, 84. 
Sheathing, 128. 
Shellac varnish, 142. 

in painting, 150. 
Shingling, 128. 
Shot used in marking, 104. 
Shoulder of joint, 88. 



Shrinkage of cast-iron, 142. 

of wood, 23. 
Shutter, 134, 
Siding, 128. 
Sieve-tubes, 17. 
Sill, 124, 126. 
Size, 146. 

•of glass, 132. 

of lumber, 22. 
Sketching, 8. 

Smoothing-plane, 60, 74, 116. 
Sole of plane, 60, 116. 
Spanish-bayonet, 19. 
Spiral vessels, 14, 17. 
Spirit-level, 58. 
Spoke-shave, 60. 
Spores, fungus, 41. 

development of, 41, 42. 
Spring-compasses, 58. 
Spring growth, 14, 16. 
Spruce, 30, 88. 
Square angle, 58, 124, 

foot, 29. 
Stairs, 136. 

pitch of, 136. 
Start, 72. 
Steel-square, 58. 
Stem of plants, 13, 19. 
Step, 136. 

Stiffness of wood, 26. 
Stile, 132, 134. 

hanging, 126. 

pulley, 126. 
Stop for center-bit, 94. 
Stop-bead, 130. 
Strength of wood, 26. 
Stretcher-joint, 102. 
Strips, parting, 126. 
Structure of wood, 13. 
Stub-mortise, 94. 
Studs, 124. 
Sub-sill, 126. 
Sugar-maple, 36, 38. 
Summer growth, 14, 16. 
Sycamore, 34, 38. 



158 



' INDEX. 



Table of woods, 38. 

Table-hinge, 118. 

T-bevel, 58, 98. 

Tear fungus, 43, 44. 

Tearing action of saws, 76, 78. 

Teeth of saws, 76, 78, 84. 

Template, 144. 

Tenon, 90, 114. 

Testing seasoned wood, 23. 

Thin membranes, 16, 17. 

Through mortise-joint, 90. 

Timber, 20, 22. 

Timber-borers, 45. 

Toadstool, 42. 

Tools, 40, 58, 60. 

sharpening. 80, 82, 84. 
Top of window-frame, 126. 
Top-rail, 132, 134. 
Toughness of wood, 26. 
Tread, 136. 
Trees, growth of, 19. 
Triangular file, 84. 
Trimmer joist, 1 24. 
Trimming, 130. 
Try-square, 58, 64. 
Tulip-tree, 37, 38. 
Turnery, 40. 
Turpentine, 16. 
Twist-bit, 60. 

Value of wood, 24, 27, 29. 
Varnish, furniture, 149. 

shellac, 142, 150. 
Veneer, 25, 146. 
Veneering, 146. 
Vessels, 17. 

Wall-string, 136. 



Wany edge, 29. 
Warped board, planing, 72. 
Warping of wood, 23. 
Water in wood, 18, 23. 

in fungus, 44. 
Water-table, 128. 
Water-tight joint, 88. 
Weather-beaten, 52. 

stain, 52. 
Wedge, 60. 
Weevil, 49, 52. 
Weight of wood, 25, 38. 
White cedar, 31, 38. 

pine, 19, 27, 30, 38. 

oak, 19, 26, 32, 38, 53. 
Whitewood, 19, 37, 38. 
Wild cherry, 35, 38. 
Wind-checks, 23. 
Window-frame, 126. 
Window-trim, 130. 
Wire-edge, 80. 
Wood, 13. 
Wood and iron, 38. 
Wood-cells, 14, 15, 16, 17. 
Wood-engraving, 25, 35, 37. 
Wood-fibers, 15, 16. 
Wood-tar, 53. 

Wood- working tools, 39, 58, 60. 
Wood-workiug trades, 39. 
Work-bench, 56, 62. 
Wound-parasite, 43, 44. 
Wreath of hand-rail, 138. 
Wrought nails, 70. 

Xylcutes robhiice, 51. 
Xi/locarpa Virginica, 50. 

Zopherus Mexicanus, 47, 48, 49. 



THE END, 



International Education Series. 

Edited by WILLIAM T. HARRIS, LL. D. 



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H 70 86 » 



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